Chapter 10

Morgan knocked lightly on the threshold. "Hey Kate. How are you doing?"

"I've had better days." Kate admitted. "Where's Olivia?"

"She's following up a lead." Morgan said, dragging the chair closer to Kate's bed. "I wanted to ask you a few questions."

"Another interview?" She eyed him suspiciously. "I don't want to do that again."

"No, just questions. About where you work."

"Alright. What do you want to know?"

"Did anyone pay special attention to you? Come by your desk a lot, for things that seemed unimportant? Anyone take you out for lunch?"

"I was a novelty the first week I got there," she chuckled, "The department had never hired an intern, so there were a bunch of people willing to help me, but it was pretty early, so I don't remember a lot of names."

"Is there anyone specific?" Morgan pressed. "Did you ever get the feeling that anyone was paying too much attention to you?"

"Isaac Slater. He's one of the specialists in our section; he sat behind me." Her face paled. "Do you think he did it?"

"We don't know. Can you tell me more about him?"

"Isaac was really helpful the first couple of weeks that I was here. He would take me to his meetings early to explain what they would be talking about, he helped me set up my computer and all the accounts, and he always thanked when I helped him, even if it was just a copy job he needed me to run." She looked hurt, and a bit confused. "But he hasn't been around much nearly as frequently as he was at first. He's been pretty busy with clients, and I've gotten busier too, so he doesn't invite me to go with him to the meetings anymore." Her voice was quiet and reserved.

"Kate, has he ever said or done anything that made you uncomfortable?"

"Not really. I mean, it was weird the first week, but I realized he's just friendly. My boss, Beth, she told me that Isaac volunteered at his church and spent a lot of time with his brother's family. I mean, it's kind of strange that he's still single…not that I would go for him, he's way too old…but I guess he is pretty involved in work. He's always there late, after everyone else has gone home." She yawned, and Morgan flipped his notebook shut and stood up.

"That's great, Thanks Kate. I'll let you rest now."

"So you really think he has them?" She asked, snuggling below the blankets.

"It looks that way." He hesitated. "Kate, he's been watching your computer."

"What do you mean?" She sat up again.

"He put a virus in your computer that tracks everything you do, and he probably knows all your passwords if he helped you set up your accounts. Do you remember that we told you that your case was part of a serial spree?"

She nodded. "That was him?"

"In all three cities that the murders occurred in, he was on business meetings. The victims were all contacts of his at the companies he was selling to."

"Oh my God." Her eyes were wide. "I didn't know…I mean…"

"None of this is your fault, Kate. He's obsessive, and you couldn't have stopped him if you tried. He's managed to keep it a secret from people he's worked with a lot longer than you."

"I know. It's just…I had no idea." Her voice was hollow and absolutely tiny.

"Do you want me to stay?" Morgan asked. "I mean, there is an officer outside the door, but if you feel safer with me here…"

"No, no, it's fine. You should go. Like I told Olivia, you need to find my family."

"We'll find them, Kate. They're going to be okay."

"I just want them here." Kate said, laying down again. "I'd give anything."

"I'm on it." He said, throwing a mock salute. "I'll see you later. Get some rest." She smiled at his antics and closed her eyes, but she was far from sleep. Her thoughts were caught in a messy web of fear that kept her up for hours.

Slater's house was a long drive out of the city, almost an hour. The ride was mostly quiet, but sprinkled with polite chit chat every couple of minutes. By the time they got to the gated suburban neighborhood, it was noon, and the sun was hung high and heavy in the sky above them. Slater's house was average-sized, but fairly extravagant for a single man with no family. The lawn was freshly mowed, and a road bike leaned against the side of the one-car garage.

"The car's gone." Elliot said, peering in a high garage window.

"JJ just texted me; he's not at work either." They walked up the cobblestone path and pounded on the door. "Isaac Slater! Open up!" Hotch looked through the windows to the side door and waited, but no one came. Hotch took out the key he had gotten from the security guard and tried it, but it didn't fit.

"He changed the locks?" Elliot asked.

"I guess so." Hotch said, slipping the key back into his pocket.

Elliot smiled somewhat eagerly. "Knock in the door?"

"Be my guest."

In one thrust, the door swung inward, and Elliot cursed, rubbing his shoulder. "Man, he had two deadbolts. Ow." Hotch was already further into the house, snapping on his gloves and examining random objects intently. Elliot watched him and looked around himself. The rooms were well furnished, but didn't look lived in. Pillows were arranged carefully on the couch, and a layer of dust coated the books on the coffee table. "So, what are we looking for?" He asked, following Hotchner into the kitchen, which actually showed signs of habitation. A bowl of slightly overripe bananas sat on the counter, and a mug sat in the sink, dregs of coffee still in the bottom.

"Anything that will help us find Kate. Unsubs have what we call comfort zones. Specific areas where he feels safe from discovery."

"So this guy's comfort zone is the size of the entire country?"

"He stayed in the business districts of the cities he was otherwise unfamiliar with. We're still not sure where he held the boys for days; possibly at his hotel."

"Are you saying that they could be here?"

"It's highly doubtful; he probably wouldn't want to risk it. He's smart, and organized. Even though he covered his tracks well, he would have had a back-up plan in place."

They walked back to a home office in the back of the house. "This is the only picture I've seen so far." Elliot said, stopping and pulling a frame off the wall. The picture inside was Slater and two kids, probably his niece and nephew. "And this guy kidnapped a little boy. Ethan's barely older than the kid in this picture."

"That may be why he started taking kids." Hotch posited. "Maybe something happened to the boy in that picture, and he's trying to protect the other boys."

Elliot shook his head. "That's sick." He turned to a thick leather photo album on the desk, but looked away in disgust. "And this is worse." They were pictures of the other boys, both alive and dead.

"No shots of the mothers." Hotch noted. "They're part of his fantasy, but he doesn't want to acknowledge them; he probably feels some kind of remorse after killing them."

"So he does have a heart."

"We said that before, this only confirms it. He actually thinks he's doing the right thing."

"Until Kate…"

"I think with Kate he realized she was completely uninvolved, and that he had hurt her for no reason."

"So he hurt her more?" Elliot asked.

"These men…they aren't rational at all. Sometimes there's no way to tell what's going through their heads unless they tell you." Hotch pulled some papers out of the recycle bin and leafed through them. "It looks like he's fairly well-off financially. His mortgage was paid off last month."

"Hm." Elliot snorted. "Wish mine was." He too grabbed some of the papers, skimming their contents. "Man, he's got a boat. I want a boat."

Hotch read over Elliot's shoulder. "In a private marina. Does our warrant cover personal property?"

"Absolutely. You think that's where he's holding the family?"

"It's about as private as you can get." Hotch said, pulling out his cell phone. "I'll call JJ and Morgan, tell them to meet us there."