Sorry again for the delay - this story is getting me all flipped out! LOL I hope that you enjoy this chapter .. tried to make it as simple as possible - just a background chapter really, and enough to keep folks wondering who did what and could someone close to Aaron have really done such a crime?

Enjoy and review any ideas you may have! Thanks


Chapter 12

Spencer Reid was annoyed – and that was saying something.

He knew that the team had been on the right track when they had found the lead to Foyet in the medication he took that couldn't be substituted. Now though, when they should have been celebrating taking him down, they were all standing in the middle of the man's apartment swapping notes having conducted a search of his abandoned apartment.

Reid cast his eye around the gathered agents, gauging their individual reactions. Almost in a circle around a rickety coffee table stood the disbelieving forms of Agents McGee, DiNozzo, Morgan, and Prentis. Absent were their leaders and Reid wondered who was going to be the one to make the call to tell them about the search that turned up nothing. He hoped they didn't do that silly Rock Scissor Paper thing. As brilliant as he was, he always lost at that game. Deciding in his mind that the person to make the call should be Morgan, seniority wins, he smiled at the brooding agent standing to his left. "Guess since you're the senior person here, you'll have to call Hotch and let him know"

It didn't escape Reid that even DiNozzo smiled at that, "This is one time I'm not going to argue my seniority"

The group smiled again but all of them were at a loss to the events that had happened.

Who killed Foyet? Why? And the most troubling thought; could this be an inside job?

Prentis was the one to break the silence. "Call Hotch, Morgan. We need to regroup and find out what the hell is going on"


Hotch ended his call and slowly turned his back to the view of the city lights from his patio. He sighed heavily. He was happy that the Foyet issue had been dealt with – though in a way he definitely didn't want. But there was an unease settling into his bones that told him things were going to get worse. He knew better than anyone that the fact Foyet had been killed right after his team had started to actively suspect him for Abby's attack meant that it could be an inside job. Since Gibb's team had been working alongside Aaron's for the entire time, they would be clear of any involvement in Foyet's death. The only person that had both means and time was Rossi. Aaron had known the man for years but he also knew that he had been under amazing pressure in the past few months. The suicide of his ex wife had been the straw to break the camel's back, but no one had seen the changes but Hotch. Rossi was that damn good at playing it cool. Now, as much as Aaron wanted to back the man, he had to wonder. Could Rossi have been the one to kill Foyet? Would he go that far to protect Abby? Yes he would. He knew that because he knew that he himself would have done the same thing if he could have. So now what?

He turned back to face the view of the city. Leaning on the railing of his patio he sighed heavily again. What the hell did he tell Gibbs? He knew Gibbs would go crazy with this new information. Knowing as he did how Gibbs felt about Abby, he knew that this would just be another mark against Rossi. Gibbs would never stand for the man becoming more involved with Abby now. And Aaron had to admit that he had to agree.

He straightened and rolled his tired shoulders. Realising where his thoughts had been heading he mentally shook himself. Rossi hadn't been found guilty yet, he may not have had anything to do with Foyet. In fact it may not have been an inside job at all – it may have been someone else that Foyet had managed to anger enough to induce a murderous rage. Yet he was ready to hang him? He shook his head. How many times had he lectured his team about making snap judgements? Follow the evidence. That will lead to the truth.

As he turned and walked back into his apartment he saw Gibbs walking out of the spare room with a now recovered Abby. He was talking to her quietly as they walked across the room. Aaron couldn't help but notice the light in Abby's eyes as she looked up at her mentor. How right they looked together.

And a dawning suddenly hit him. His profiler mind could see easily see the indicators and the evidence that Rossi could be their number one suspect. But his heart was overwhelmingly against him. He knew though that he would have to do what he always did; look at the evidence with no emotions whatsoever.

"You have a situation"

Aaron closed his office door so he could take the call on his mobile in private. The person on the other end of the phone was Joe Mantegna, a long serving agent in the FBI's LA field office, a man that Aaron had known and trusted for years and someone who would be able to find out if his thoughts about Rossi could be true or not without raising suspicion.

He had given Joe no details except the bare facts. His team had been hunting a serial killer for nearly 6 months, and had just discovered that their prime suspect had been killed a month into their investigation of him.

So far a member of a gang had been picked up and questioned about Foyet and seemed to know more about the man's life than he should. There were things that Foyet had been doing in the last weeks of his life that the gang member had known. The FBI surveillance video had shown that he had been fastidious about keeping his comings and goings to no schedule, just to ensure that no one would know if he was at the house or not. His home was not in his name, he walked everywhere he needed to go and when he shopped he always called ahead to place the order and then walked to collect it. A little investigating at the local store had revealed that Foyet would always call the store, order the same items and then insist there was no receipt printed out. He would always pay in cash to avoid leaving any kind of paper trail. To further hamper those like Garcia who had been searching for him, he had opened an account under a false name using a false identification. The kicker had been that it was in the name of a fictious woman and he had paid a hooker to dress up a little, go into the bank and open the account. No one knew it was actually Foyet who had paid the money he had received from an insurance payout into that account. And no one knew that it was actually Foyet drawing out money every month from that same account. Things that the FBI, who had been watching Foyet were thought to have only known. On the day that he died Foyet had returned to his house after going to the bank and the chemist. Keeping to his regular routine, he should have left the house again just after 5pm to collect his grocery shopping. However, by 8pm one of the surveillance team decided to subtly enter the backyard to see if there was something wrong. He saw Foyet on the floor of the kitchen and a simple stakeout became a homicide investigation. Was the gang member Foyet's killer? If so, to Aaron, it sounded like essential inside information had been passed on to the gangster in order for him to do the killing. Such as key points to Foyet's routine, not least of all the time he would most likely be at home. And entry into the house undetected was another factor that worried Aaron.

"What is it?" he asked sitting at his desk.

Aaron knew what the agent was about to tell him, braced himself for it, but even as the words came across the line he still felt the denial set in.

"You have a leak in your team"