"Agent Chad Nichols has been with the team since Gideon first put it together. He's our technical specialist, providing us with information whether he stays here or he's out in the field with us," Hotch told Reid, as he led him toward the room Nichols referred to as his den. He had given Reid the tour of the entire building, leaving Nichols' office for last. As he expected, the team's technical specialist was in front of his five computer screens. The door to the office was ajar but not wide open.
Agent Hotchner knocked of the door.
"Hold one minute, sir," Nichols said from inside the office. It was followed by a call for them to come in.
Hotch pushed the door open the rest of the way and motioned Reid into the room. Hotch then followed the younger agent inside.
"Morning, Hotch," Nichols said, seeing the older agent walk in. "This must be the new guy," he continued, turning his attention to Reid. Nichols got to his feet and held a hand out to the new agent. "Chad Nichols resident computer and research geek. Nice to meet you."
Reid shook Nichols' hand. He attempted to introduce himself but suddenly found that his mouth felt as though it was filled with sawdust. From behind Reid, Hotch spoke up.
"Nichols, this is Dr. Spencer Reid, our team's newest member. Did we interrupt something?"
"Gideon called and was about to update me on what's going on down south. You want to listen in?"
Hotch nodded, as Nichols sat back down in his chair. He hit a few buttons on the phone and then spoke. "Hey Boss, you're on speaker. Hotch and that new k . . . Agent Reid have joined me," Nichols informed Gideon, stopping himself from saying new kid upon remembering Gideon's lecture to him and his two teammates the other day.
"Sorry, I wasn't there to greet you your first day, Dr. Reid, but welcome to the team," Gideon said, his voice coming over the speaker of the phone on Nichols' desk.
Having managed to get some moisture in his mouth again Reid managed a, "thank-you, sir."
"How are things going down there, Gideon?"
"Not good. We've got three new bodies, a preliminary estimate is they've been dead for about four hours. Positive identification is going to take some time yet but we've either got a family that was killed or the UnSub managed to snag three people at different times. What we do know is we've got the bodies of a middle-aged male, middle age female, and a female girl around eight years old."
"Same MO as the others?" Hotch asked.
"Yeah. All three were found cut in pieces and placed in their own suitcase and then left in the open on the banks of the Cooper River."
Keeping an eye on Reid while listening to Gideon, Hotch noticed the young man pale considerably. As Gideon continued, Hotch took a step closer to the younger agent and kept a close eye on him. Discussing things in a class room and hearing about events that were currently taking place were two different things.
"We're further down river from where the other bodies were found by about a mile, though. We haven't come up with any concrete evidence as to why he changed his dump site though it's likely he thought the old one might be under surveillance following the media reporting the first two murders. One thing is for sure though, the cuts made are too clean and precise for these to be his first kill. The way the body parts are neatly arranged, in the exact same way in each suitcase, also indicates this is something he has perfected. Pictures and interviews of detectives on the first two scenes reveal the same thing."
"So he's killed before," Hotch stated.
"Right. Hudson thinks he recalls a case a few years back involving bodies being cut up and placed in coolers. It may be the same guy. Think you can find a reference to it, Nichols?"
"Any idea as to the location of these crimes?"
There was a pause and faint talking as Gideon spoke with Hudson. "No. Hudson can't recall where he heard it or where it happened."
"Do you realize how many police stations there are in the United States? I mean you've got state, city, and county police and they don't exactly like to talk to one another as you know. Without a region to look in I'm going to be looking at each one individually."
"Can you do it?" Gideon asked, used to the computer specialist's grumbles.
"Yes, but it's going to take awhile."
"Nevada," Reid said quietly. Hotch and Nichols, who had barely heard him shot him a questioning look. Hotch gave the young agent a nod to continue. "Three years ago, there were reports of bodies being found in coolers in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area at the mouth of the Muddy River. I remember reading about at least four bodies being found over a four-month period. The Las Vegas field office offered assistance in solving the murders but was turned away by city police."
"Got it," Nichols said, who had been typing information into his computer as Reid spoke. "Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department conducted the investigation into the disappearance and murder of five people from the towns of Arrowhead, Overton and Logandale, Nevada. All three towns located near the Muddy River north of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area where the bodies were found. The investigation continued for four months following the discovery of the fifth body but was finally left as an unsolved case. Guess after refusing the FBI's help when it was offered after the second body was found, the LVMPD was too prideful to ask for help when they realized they were getting nowhere."
"If we can't solve it no one can," Gideon commented. "Nichols, I want you to gather all the information you can on those five murders. Contact the police station that worked the case and ask them to send us the files from the case and be nice about it. They weren't happy with the bureau offering help before and it's likely they're not going to appreciate our interest now."
"Got it. Nice. I can do that," Nichols said.
"Nice work, Dr. Reid," Gideon said. "We'll stay in touch. Depending on how this thing goes, I may end up needing you three down here yet."
"Understood," Hotch replied. "Meanwhile, if there's anything we can do to help from here, let us know."
"I will. When are you and Reid leaving for that interview?"
"After lunch. We'll drive out there tonight, spend the night and be ready for the interview in the morning. The plan is to drive back following it."
"All right. We're heading back to the station down here to start going over what we know so far. Gideon out."
"Talk nicely to the city cops," Nichols muttered under his breath. He raised his voice a little as he continued. "That's easier said than done. Hey Junior, you're from Nevada aren't you?" Nichols asked, to which Reid nodded in response. "So Hotch, why don't we let the hometown boy make the request? Might go over better with the locals, talking with one of their own," he suggested, letting his gaze move from Reid to Hotch as he spoke.
"Nice try, Nichols, but we're not feeding him to the lions on his first day here," Hotch told the other agent, as he rested one hand on Reid's shoulder. "All you've got to do is politely ask for the files of a three year old, unsolved murder case. That shouldn't be hard at all."
"Yeah, right. I don't hear you volunteering."
"Reid and I have got paperwork to work on," Hotch replied.
"Paperwork over talking to the locals," Nichols said, shifting his gaze from Hotch to Reid. "That right there should tell you what I'm going up against, Junior." Nichols looked back at Hotch. "You know what would make this job a whole lot easier, someone trained to play diplomat to the local authorities."
"Well, trained or not, you're the diplomat for the day, Nichols. If you run into trouble though, you know where to find me," Hotch said.
Nichols nodded and gave a quick, sloppy salute before turning his chair to face the desk again.
"Come on, we really do need to get your paperwork out of the way before we leave this afternoon," Hotch told Reid nodding toward the door of the office.
As the two of them left the office though, Hotch thought about what Nichols had said. ~Someone trained to play diplomat to the local authorities. We're trying to get a media liaison added to the team. Why not have that person help deal with the local authorities too? ~ Hotch thought, making a mental note to add it to the proposal he was supposed to work up.
"Ah, Sir, what was that about feeding me to the lions?" Reid asked, as Hotch led the new agent back to the conference room. As Reid's desk was in the bullpen, he thought the young agent might feel more at ease working on the standard paper work away from prying eyes.
"The local police forces are not always receptive to our help, even when we're invited in sometimes. They see the Feds as coming in to save the day and take all the credit for things that they have put in a lot of man hours into before we even get on the scene. Getting their cooperation is a lot of politics and stroking egos at times, which is something they don't teach you in the academy," Hotch told him. "Everyone has different tactics and styles, all with their own flaws and merits. I'll of course give you some pointers but I want you to observe the other agents on this team while you're out in the field, too. Learn what they do and observe what works or doesn't work, then take what does work and tailor it to your own personality."
The instructors at the Academy had told them that their learning period did not end when they left the academy, one of the main reasons for the two-year probationary period of an agent. Reid was realizing that those instructors hadn't been wrong. Here he was only an hour into his first assignment and he was being reminded of that.
"Despite his reluctance at doing so, Nichols is actually good at dealing with the local law enforcement agencies. You can learn a lot from him in that area. However, I'm not about to allow that to happen unsupervised. As much as Nichols hates playing politics with the locals he probably would let you make the request and either sink or swim," Hotch added, as he led the way into the conference room. "Don't get me wrong, he's a good guy and would never do anything to put you in danger but when it comes to getting out of tasks he doesn't like, stay on your toes."
Reid nodded, not sure how to respond to that comment. Hotch motioned to the table.
"Take a seat and I'll go get the paperwork from my office."
"Yes, sir," Reid said.
As Hotch left the conference room, Reid walked over to the table. He slipped the strap of his bag over his head, placing it in an empty chair and then sat down in the chair next to it. The young agent looked around the room. Agent Hotchner had told him that this was where they reviewed their cases. Where they did most of their team brainstorming. Reid knew he would be spending quite a bit of time here over the next couple of years.
"You've been back at the BAU for two days and already I miss you working at the Academy," Haley said as she sat across the kitchen table from her husband later that day. With going on the overnight business trip, Hotch had managed to plan his schedule to share one last meal with his wife before leaving.
Agent Hotchner had just informed Haley that depending on how the case went down in South Carolina, he might be headed down there following the interview. Nichols had managed to get the Nevada State Police to open their files concerning the unsolved murders in the Lake Meade area to the FBI. When Hotch had left the office to come here, Nichols was busy getting the information from the Nevada police. Afterwards, he would pass it along to the three down in South Carolina as well as start going through it himself. The first thing they needed to do was determine if the sets of murders were in fact connected.
"I know I complained about the long hours you were putting in then, but at least I knew you would be home every night."
Hotch sighed. "I know this isn't easy for you Haley but it's what I do. I'll stay in touch while I'm gone, you know that. Besides, there is no guarantee that Gideon is going to want us down there, I'm just giving you the heads up so it won't come as a surprise."
"I do appreciate that," Haley said, forcing a small smile. She reached across the table, to take her husband's hand. "I just miss you when you're away."
"I miss you too," Aaron told her, placing his other hand on top of hers.
The two fell silent. They spent a few moments just enjoying each others company, silent messages passing between their eyes.
"That new agent started today didn't he?"
"Yes he did. He'll be coming along on the interview with me."
"He seems like a nice young man, though a little awkward," Haley commented. She thought about Reid's comment about his only family being his mother and then thought about her own family. She had her parents, her sister and her brother not to mention extended family. Family was important to her and she hoped they would have a kid of their own soon. As much as she loved Aaron, she couldn't imagine what it would be like if he was the only one there to provide the kind of support that only family could provide. "I kind of feel sorry for him, being here on his own. Where is his mother living?"
Aaron looked at her, knowing exactly what she was trying to express with her words. He knew what family met to Haley. "I'm not really sure. I would assume Las Vegas, as that's where Reid is from."
"So she isn't even close," Haley commented. "Maybe we could invite him over for dinner from time to time," she suggested, not sure how her husband would react to the suggestion. They had often had Gideon, Collins, as well as Nichols and his family over and gone to the Nichols' home from time to time. They even saw Franklin and his wife from time to time, though the older couple were spending their time traveling since Franklin had retired. Haley knew that her husband had grown close to his teammates over the years. They were important people in the life of the man she loved and for his sake the blonde had accepted them into her life. Other than Spencer she had yet to meet the newer members of the team, though Aaron had talked to her about them. Was there a different dynamic with the newer agents that she wasn't aware of? Morgan and Robbins had been with the team since close to the start of the year and even the outsider she was, she had a feeling they weren't as close as the original members of the team had been. Now Robbins wasn't there and another agent had taken his place. Haley couldn't even recall the name Aaron had given her when he had mentioned the recent personnel changes.
"We can do that if you'd like. Just let me know when and I'll extend the invitation," Aaron told her, glad that she was willing to share the time she had with him with his co-workers.
The team aspect of what they did had fostered close bonds between the members of a team. He had learned that over the years. Like Gideon had said, their team dynamics were changing. Collins leaving was like losing a family member, and he hoped she would stay in touch when she finally settled somewhere. As much as he missed her though, he was happy for her too. That was something that Robbins had never accepted and probably one of the reasons he hadn't fit well with the BAU. Robbins was too much of a loner and while he would have fit in with the old style of the BAU, the team concept just wasn't something that would work for him.
Morgan had been much the same way as Robbins was when he had joined. Distant and guarded, and even now, none of the team knew too much about Morgan's personal life. His intelligence, professionalism, street smarts, and the skills he brought to the team were invaluable though. Right before Hotch had taken a leave of absence from the BAU to serve as field counselor at the Academy that had started to change. Morgan had started to talk about his life outside the bureau more. Had talked about his years before joining the FBI. Given how chummy Morgan and the new agent, Hudson, had appeared the day before, Hotch figured that hadn't changed.
Hotch recalled his conversation with Gideon from the day before about the changing team dynamics. Would those dynamics interfere with the effectiveness of the team? It was something only time could tell for sure, though like Gideon, as one of the original members of the team he felt responsibility to make sure that it didn't.
"Penny for your thoughts," Haley said, looking quizzically across the table at her husband.
Hotch smiled. She knew him well, maybe sometimes better than he knew himself.
"Just thinking about what Gideon and I were talking about yesterday about the changing dynamics of the team and wondering how its going to affect us. Gideon, Collins, Franklin, Nichols and I were together for so long and we knew how each other would react in any situation. That's changing. First Morgan replaced Franklin and then we brought Robbins onboard. It wasn't the same after that. I'd like to think the rest of us welcomed them into the team but maybe we didn't do as good of a job as we thought we did. At any rate, Robbins just didn't seem to be able to get comfortable."
"From what you've said, Robbins never went out of the way to really fit in with the team. You guys can't take all the blame for it not working if that was the case."
"What if we didn't try hard enough? If that's the case, then what's to say it's not going to happen again?"
"You and the original members of the team shared something special Aaron. You guys made something work that everyone else said wasn't possible. It's only natural that you all felt a special bond that came from accomplishing that. You probably won't be able to capture that again but that doesn't mean the team won't be able to make adjustments and keep functioning. Just give it time."
"Words of wisdom from a very beautiful and smart lady."
"Well, of course I'm smart, I married you didn't, I?" Haley said, with a smile giving her husband's hand a squeeze.