A/N: I apologize for the delay. I've had a bit of writer's block while writing chapter 13 and wanted to get that one done before I uploaded this. Hope you're all still with me :)

Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites. On to the next chapter. The team get a new case and the drama starts to build up.

Hope you enjoy and don't forget to leave a review :)

-ThianaJay10

Chapter 12: Nobody said it was easy

Any other weekend plans had to be put on hold due to a case that came up on Sunday morning. The random kidnapping of an eighteen year old girl in Virginia. Or at least it appeared to be random. The team gathered around the table in the conference room, coffees in hand, as Garcia handed out copies of the case file.

"Morning everyone. I apologize for cutting your weekend short but Metro asked us to assist on this case. The lead detective thinks it may be connected to two other kidnappings as well as a homicide that occurred sometime last week." Hotch told his team. "Go ahead, Garcia."

"Alright, crime fighters. Hope you're well rested because this one is pretty crazy. Approximately four hours ago, eighteen year old college freshman Stephany Dawson was kidnapped outside the gym she usually goes to." Garcia clicked her remote and a picture of the victim appeared on screen. She had long dark brown hair and bright green eyes.

"Who reported her missing?" JJ asked.

"Her parents did. After they received this." On screen she brought up an email that had contained a video link as well as a few pictures of Stephany tied to a chair, with tape placed over her mouth.

"Where did the link lead to?" Morgan asked.

"That's the awful part. It was a live-stream video feed, which can't be traced unless it's online. But even then, it could take weeks to track done." She said with a grimace.

"Please tell me this unsub did not make her parents watch while he hurt her." Prentiss pleaded.

"I wish I could Em. According to her parents, he made her say goodbye to them. When she refused, he hit her and held a knife to her throat until she agreed."

"This guy is cold. Making his victim say goodbye to her family before he does God knows what to her." Rossi shook his head, disgusted.

"What about the other two cases?" Reid asked.

Garcia brought up the other cases on the screen. "Alyson Stevens, nineteen, was kidnapped last Monday. Three days after that, Halle Roberts, eighteen, was kidnapped." The smiling faces of two pretty green-eyed brunettes were shown on screen. "Two days after the second kidnapping, Alyson's body was discovered in a shallow grave near her home. She had been severely beaten, sexually assaulted and stabbed multiple times in the chest and abdomen." Garcia relayed, choosing not to look at the horrible images displayed on the screen behind her.

"This is brutal. There's a lot of rage shown." JJ noticed. "What was the cause of death?"

"According to the M.E, exsanguination. She bled out from the stab wounds." Garcia answered.

"He obviously has a type. All three victims have the same physical features: Dark brown hair, green eyes, fair skin, athletic built." Morgan pointed out.

"Yes. He does. And Halle is still missing. If he sticks to the pattern, we have less than 48 hours to find her alive." Hotch told them.

"And three days until he kidnaps another girl." Reid added.

"Which means Stephany has less than five days left before he kills her." Emily said.

"Was there any DNA found on the victim?" Morgan asked.

"Yes. But there were no matches in the system." Garcia replied.

"So, he doesn't have a record. He knows we can't use any DNA evidence found on the vic to identify him." Emily pointed out.

"But where and how does he choose his victims? Rossi enquired. "He had to have been stalking them before he kidnapped them."

"Social media, maybe." JJ suggested. "Teenagers nowadays post every little thing online. Where they are, what they're doing, who they're with. It wouldn't have been hard for our Unsub to stalk multiple victims at the same time." She threw out there.

"Seventy-five percent of teens are on a social network. The vast majority of American teenagers are on Facebook. The average teen has 201 Facebook friends." Reid said. "Fifty-five percent of teens have given out personal information to someone they don't know, including photographs and physical descriptions. Twenty-nine percent have been stalked or contacted by someone they don't know." He continued. "It's highly probable that this Unsub used various social networking sites to select his victims."

This made Aaron clench his jaw. He had a teenager now that he had to worry about. Aria could possibly be one of those many teenagers on various social networking sites. He had to remind himself that she was fine and he needed to focus on the case, in order to bring those missing girls back home and find the person responsible.

"Okay, Genius. We get it. Teenagers and social media go hand in hand." Morgan intercepted before Reid could spurt out any more statistics.

"I'll check if they had profiles on any networking sites." Garcia said as she turned her attention towards her laptop in front of her and started typing.

Hotch nodded. "Detective Fisher should be arriving soon. We'll be running point from here. In the meantime, Morgan and Prentiss, go talk to Alyson Stevens' parents. See if they remember anything from the video feed and if there was anyone new in their lives. JJ, Reid, do the same with Halle Roberts' mother. Rossi and I will talk to Stephany Dawson's parents as soon as they arrive with Detective Fisher. Garcia, once you've finished, I want you to go over any surveillance footage you can find near the abduction sites. Look for any suspicious vehicles or activity in the areas." Hotch handed out his orders. The team nodded then took off leaving Rossi and Hotch alone in the conference room.

Aaron sighed, shaking his head. "This is bad, Dave. We have nothing on this guy."

"Nothing yet." Dave amended. "We'll catch him, Aaron. You have to believe in the team."

Hotch nodded but didn't reply. Instead he stared at the crime scene photos of their first victim, Alyson. She had just started college and had her whole life ahead of her. What a waste. He thought. His eyes shifted to the smiling faces of the other two girls who were still missing.

"You're thinking about Aria, aren't you?" Rossi guessed.

Aaron sighed. "It's kind of hard not to." He said. Cases that involved teenagers were never easy. But now that he had Aria in his life, it seemed worse.

"How did the rest of the day go yesterday?" Rossi asked, hoping to distract him for the next few minutes.

He turned around with a slight smile on his face. "Pretty good." He said softly. "Jack was still a little shy around both Aimee and Aria but he handled it okay. Aria was a little nervous though. I think she was worried she might say or do something to upset him. But she eventually relaxed. Jack spent the rest of the day glued to her side." He informed him.

"See? I told you they would be okay." Dave told him.

"Yeah. I just hope it stays that way after I tell him she's his sister." He said with a hopeful smile. "Looks like Detective Fisher and the Dawsons are here." Hotch said as he noticed a redhead walk into the bullpen with a distraught-looking couple following closely behind her.

"Agent Hotchner?" She asked.

"Yes. That's me." He said as he shook her hand. "This is Agent David Rossi." He motioned to Dave, who smiled as he shook her extended hand.

"Detective Angela Fisher." She smiled politely. "These are Stephany's parents, Chris and Hope Dawson." She introduced as they all got acquainted.

"Thank you for taking on this case. We really appreciate the help." She said sincerely.

"Of course." He nodded. "We can talk in here." He said, motioning to the conference room. This was not going to be an easy conversation. He waited until everyone entered the room, took a deep breath then followed behind them.


"Approximately, six hours ago, eighteen year old college freshman, Stephany Dawson was abducted outside the fitness center near her residence." Hotch announced to the news reporters as he held up a photograph of Stephany. "She has long dark brown hair and green eyes, and was last seen wearing grey sweats with black sneakers." He informed them. "The FBI is working very closely with Metro PD in order to find the person responsible. We believe that this kidnapping may be connected to the kidnapping of Halle Roberts, also eighteen, which occurred last Thursday. If anyone has any information regarding these abductions, please come forward or call the tip line on screen. At this time we have no suspects but every effort is being made in order to find these girls and bring them home to their families. Stephany's parents would like to say a few words. Please refrain from asking any questions. Another statement will be released as soon as we have more information. Thank you." He ended then stepped to the side to allow the Dawsons' to stand at the podium.

Mrs. Dawson kept a tight grip on her husband's upper arm as a few tears slipped down her cheeks. It was obvious that she wasn't able to speak, so Mr. Dawson decided to take the lead. He took a deep breath before he started.

"My wife and I are finding it very hard to understand why this has happened. Our daughter, Stephy…" He paused. "Is such a good kid. She just started college. She's smart, has a big heart and is beautiful inside and out. She's our oldest and her little brother and sister adore her." He smiled sadly. "I just want to say that if anyone knows anything about what happened to her or who took her, please come forward." He pleaded as he struggled to keep the tears at bay.

"We just want our little girl back safely. Please." Mrs. Dawson added softly, her voice laced with sadness.

"What do we have on victimology?" Hotch asked.

The team had gathered in the bullpen after the press conference and interviews were finished and had started putting together whatever information they had gathered.

"Besides age and physical features, these girls have nothing in common. They come from different backgrounds, went to different schools and there's nothing to indicate that they knew each other." Morgan started.

"Alyson Stevens was an only child and came from a wealthy family. Her parents are both lawyers. She was studying Fashion Designing." Prentiss continued.

"Whereas, Halle Roberts was raised by a single mother, who works two jobs and she has a younger brother. She worked at a local coffee shop to help pay for her part-time Nursing studies." JJ stated.

"And Stephany Dawson landed a scholarship to study Dance. She has two younger siblings, her dad's a contractor and her mom's a pre-school teacher." Rossi filled in.

"The geographical profile shows that the victims lived too far away from each other to cross paths. The first victim, Alyson was dumped near her home, so it's possible that the Unsub lives close by. It would be too much of a risk to drive further out to dump a body."

"Garcia, did you find out if these girls had profiles on social networking sites?" Hotch asked.

She nodded. "I did and they do. But it's a dead end. Their accounts were public so anyone could view them. Our Unsub didn't have to friend them or hack their accounts to get what he needed." She said with a grimace. "I went through the surveillance tapes as well. I didn't find anything on the first two abductions but this morning's one was caught on type." She said as she brought up the video on her computer.

"That's good, right?" Morgan asked.

"Not entirely, my prince. The quality's not that great and neither is the angle." She said before she pressed play and looked over to Hotch. "I'm still working on trying to clear it up but it's gonna take a while, Boss man."

Hotch nodded as he and the rest of the team watched the video of Stephany's abduction. They bounced ideas off each other for the next few hours and tried to figure out their next move. Honestly, they couldn't do much more. Not unless they got a reliable tip from someone or they had another body to work with.

Hotch observed his team as they worked together, half-empty coffee cups and case files spread out across their desks. They looked exhausted but kept on working, determined to find a lead. The tip line hadn't helped much.

"Alright. Take a break everyone." He told them.

"Hotch, we're fine." Prentiss said. The others agreed.

"Take a break." He insisted. "Stretch your legs, get some fresh air, make more coffee. Do anything other than work on this case for the next fifteen minutes." He ordered.

They were reluctant at first but eventually agreed and headed out of the bullpen. Rossi and Hotch were the only ones remaining.

"You planning on taking your own advice?" Dave asked as Aaron stood staring at the case board with his arms folded across his chest.

Aaron shrugged. "I might. I was thinking of checking in with the kids." He said with a small smile.

Dave noticed how his lips twitched into a smile when he said 'kids', but didn't mention anything about it. "Well, what are you waiting for then?" He said with a smirk. Aaron nodded then made his way up to his office, not wanting to waste any more time.


Aria sat on the sofa in the TV room, legs stretched out on the coffee table in front of her as Izzy laid on the carpet floor, flat on her back with her feet propped up on the sofa next to Aria. They spent the most of the afternoon going over the Shakespearian play, Macbeth, to prep for their upcoming English test.

"Can we please take a break? My eyes are about to fall out." Izzy complained.

Aria laughed as she took of her glasses. "Sure. I'll go get us some snacks and we can binge watch some mindless reality show." She said as she got up.

"Yes!" Izzy fist bumped the air in excitement as she grabbed the TV remote and started flipping through the channels. "So, ABDC, Hell's Kitchen or the Kardashians?" She asked.

"You pick." She called out from the kitchen. "I'll get some glue in case your eyes fall out." She mused.

"You're hilarious, Marano." She quipped. "Such a smart ass." She mumbled.

"It's part of my charm." Aria joked as she walked back into the room, arms filled with junk food. "And I heard that, Blakemore." She said as she threw a pack of sour worms at Izzy's head.

"Hey! That hurt." She said as she rubbed her head and complained until she saw what was in the package. "Aww, you got me my favorite." She smiled. "I freaking love you, A." She exclaimed dramatically.

"Finally you admit it." She said, playing along. "Does that mean I'm forgiven?" She asked, with a puppy-dog look on her face.

Izzy looked at her, then laughed. "God, how does Daniel say no to that face?" She asked.

"Oh, he doesn't." She answered with a grin as they both burst out laughing.

"It's the eyes." Izzy told her. "Aaron is so screwed." She joked.

Aria smiled, not disagreeing with that statement. She shrugged then felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out then smiled when she saw who was calling. "Speaking of Aaron…" She said as she showed Izzy her phone.

"Marano." She answered with a grin.

Aaron chuckled lightly. "Hi." He greeted then exhaled slowly. "How are you?"

She smiled. "I'm good. How's your case going?" She asked.

He frowned. "How did you know I was working on a case?"

"Uh, we saw the press conference you gave earlier on TV." She admitted. "You're investigating those kidnappings, right?" She asked.

He sighed. "Yeah." He paused. "Did you say 'we'?" He asked with a frown.

"I did. Izzy's been here since this morning." She said as she looked over at Izzy who was watching her instead of the TV.

"Tell him." Izzy whispered.

Aria shook her head. "She said you looked great on camera."

He laughed, thinking she was joking.

"I'm not even kidding. Those were her exact words." She told him.

"It's true." He heard faintly in the background and knew without a doubt that that voice belonged to Izzy.

"Told you." Aria said.

He smiled. "Well, tell her I said thank you."

Aria stood up and moved just outside the room, not wanting to have an audience when she spoke further to Aaron. "I will." She paused. "Are you okay?" She asked concerned. "I don't know all the details about the case but it sounds like a bad one."

"It is. But I'm fine. We're all working really hard on this one." He told her. "Thank you for asking." He said softly.

She smiled. "You're welcome." She paused. "Is there another reason why you called besides checking in?" She asked.

He chuckled. Of course she would notice that he would call her whenever he got a new case. "You really are too smart for your own good."

She grinned. "So I've been told."

He took a deep breath before he continued. "Are you on any social networking sites?" He asked her.

Okay. That was not what I expected. Aria thought. "Uhm, yes. A few." She answered with a frown. "Why are you asking me this?" She asked but was met with silence on the other end. "Aaron?" She said.

"I'm here." He told her then sighed. "I'm sorry. I know that's an odd question to ask a teenager, I just…" He paused. "…needed to know."

"Okay…" She drawled out. "Does this have anything to do with your case?" She asked him. It was the only reason she could think of as to why he would ask her that.

He shook his head. "I didn't call you to talk about my case." He told her softly.

"I know. You never do. And I get it." She told him. "Ignorance is bliss, right?" She said with a small smile.

He nodded. "Something like that, yeah."

She ran a hand through her hair and bit her lip. Why would Aaron care about me being on social networks? She wondered.

Then it hit her.

"You know, Daniel was part of the British Army before he became an attorney. He worked in the Intelligence Unit for about six years and I remember when I was thirteen, I asked my mom if I could join Facebook, you know, since everyone else was already on it and I didn't wanna miss out. She mentioned it to Daniel and he sat me down and started telling me about his time in Intelligence and he mentioned things like protective security and cyber threats. I obviously had no idea what he was talking about so I just stared at him with a dumbfounded look on my face, while I tried to figure out what that had to do with me joining Facebook." She laughed softly. "That lastly for nearly an hour."

"What I'm trying to say is that if you're worried about my accounts being viewed by someone I don't know or hacked, you don't have to be. My accounts are private and the network's completely secured. Daniel made sure of that." She assured him.

"Thank you for telling me that." He said, feeling relieved. "Again, you are way too smart for your own good." He said with a smile. "I have to go." He told her, regretfully. "I'll try to call you tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll be here." She paused. "Hey Aaron?" She called out before he could say goodbye. "Be careful. Please." She told him, softly.

He smiled then nodded, even though she couldn't see him. "Always."


"We've got another body." Detective Fisher announced to the team who was gathered in the bullpen.

It was Tuesday morning, two days after Stephany's kidnapping and they had no leads.

"Is it Halle Roberts?" Hotch asked.

"Don't know for sure. I'm about to head out there now. And then I have to notify her mother and ask her to make an ID." She said solemnly.

The team gave her sympathetic looks. Notifying the family was probably the worst part of the job.

"We should probably go with you to the scene. Maybe we'll get a lead." Hotch told her. He hated the fact that another girl had to die in order for them to get more information about their Unsub. She nodded and waited for the team before they headed to the elevators.


Hotch observed the tall red-haired detective as she comforted the mother and brother of Halle Roberts, outside the morgue. He had offered to do the death notification once they found out that the body that had been discovered earlier that morning was indeed Halle Roberts, but she insisted that she be the one to do it. She had been found a few miles away from the first victim, Alyson, and had the same injuries as her as well.

"Hey." She said as she walked towards him. "You didn't have to wait for me." She told him.

"Well, I am your ride so…" He trailed off.

"Right." She said as she sat down next to him. "I hate this part of the job." She said with a sigh as she looked back to where the Roberts family was standing.

"Yeah, Me too." He replied. "I owe you an apology. I didn't mean to insinuate that you couldn't do your job." He told her sincerely.

She shrugged. "It's okay. I'm the youngest female homicide detective at the department so I get it. People assume I'm inexperienced because I'm young, but I've seen a lot of terrible things and today was not my first death notification." She told him. "And it probably won't be the last either." She gave him a sad smile. "But you don't need to apologize, Agent Hotchner. You were just trying to help. I can't fault you for that."

He nodded. "Alright. If you won't accept my apology, can I at least buy you a cup of coffee?" He offered, figuring that he might as well order for the team as well before they made their way back to Quantico.

She smiled. "Now that I can agree to." She told him before they got up and left the mortuary.


Aria was late.

That was the first thing she realized when she woke up that morning. She jumped out of bed, nearly falling over her own two feet to get to the bathroom and take a quick shower. She was supposed to meet up with Danny and Izzy before school started to finalize a few things regarding the showcase but had forgotten to set her alarm. Therefore, she was running nearly thirty minutes behind schedule. Great. She thought. Just how I wanted to start my weekend.

Ten minutes later, she exited the bathroom, freshly showered and teeth brushed. She grabbed a pair of jeans and a random t-shirt to wear, as well as sneakers and a light jacket. She quickly ran a brush through her wavy hair, not having the energy to tie it up. With one last glance in the mirror, she grabbed her books and school bag and hurriedly made her way down the stairs towards the kitchen. Luciana was already there and was just about to start with breakfast.

"Buon giorno, Cara." The housekeeper greeted. "I was just about to make breakfast. Vuoi qualcosa di particolare?" She asked.

Aria grimaced. "Mi dispiace. Non riesco a stare. Sono in ritardo." She said as she looked at the clock on the wall after sending Danny a quick text letting him know that she'd be late. It was 07:35am. If she left now, she'd make in time for the 07:45am bus. It would take about twenty minutes to get to school. She'd miss homeroom, but first period started at 08:15am so she could make it in time for that. "I overslept." She explained as she grabbed an apple from the fruit basket.

"Take this." Luciana told her she handed her a bottle of orange juice. "What about lunch?" She asked.

"I'll just grab something at school." She told her as she finally had everything she needed. She kissed Luciana on the cheek. "Grazie." She said with a smile. "Oh, just a fair warning. My room is a mess. Do not go in there. I'll clean up after school." She said as she made her way towards the front door. "I'll see you later. Buona giomata." She called over her shoulder then left and began her short walk to the bus stop.


"Good Morning, Dear. Do you want anything specific?"

"I'm sorry. I can't stay. I'm running late."

"Thank you."

"Have a good day."


Aria was just about to turn the corner when she looked up and what she saw made her stop in her tracks. A young brunette girl was being held at knifepoint by a guy wearing a hoodie. She quickly ducked behind a dumpster, not wanting to be seen. Oh God. She thought. What do I do? She asked herself as she looked around, hoping to see someone who could help. Unfortunately, the area was deserted that time of the morning.

"Get in the van." She heard the man order.

Aria took a deep breath, then peered over the dumpster to see what was happening.

"Please don't hurt me." The girl begged.

"I said get in the van now!" He yelled as he grabbed her arm.

Aria reached for a cellphone in her pocket, swiping the screen with shaky fingers as she dialed 911.

"911, what's you emergency?" The operator answered.

"I need help. I think a girl's being kidnapped." She said as calmly as she could, ignoring the rapid beating of her heart and her shaky hands. "There's a man holding her at knifepoint, telling her to get into his van. I can't see his face."

"Can you tell me where you are?"

"The alley behind the bus stop on 10th street in Richmond." She told him.

"Alright. I've got your location. I'm dispatching a unit. Can you tell me your name?"

"Aria. Aria Marano." She whispered.

"Okay. Aria. Is it possible for you to leave the area?" He asked her.

She shook her head. "No. Not without him seeing me."

"That's fine. Tell me what's happening." He told her.

She slowly raised her head, keeping it low so she isn't seen. "Uhm, he just grabbed her arm. He's trying to pull her into the van but she's refusing."

"What does the van look like?"

"It's dark blue. I can't tell the make but it's an older model. I can't see the number plate."

"That's okay. Can you tell me anything else about the man and the girl?"

"He's, uh, tall, 5.10 maybe and kinda muscular. I'm sorry. He's wearing a dark hoodie. I can't describe him further. The girl looks about eighteen or nineteen. She has long dark hair."

"That's good, Aria. You're doing great." He encouraged her.

She shook her head. "Oh God. He's gonna hurt her. I have to do something." She said, feeling slightly panicked as she made eye contact with the girl and saw how scared she looked. Aria turned her head slightly so the girl could see she was calling for help.

"No, Aria. Listen to me. You need to stay put. Help is on the way. Do not draw attention to yourself. Do you understand me?"

She nodded. "Yeah." She exhaled slowly. "Okay." She agreed then turned her head just in time to see the man punch the girl in the face, knocking her out cold.

Aria gasped as she ducked back behind the dumpster, her foot making contact with a soda can she hadn't seen, which noisily bounced off the wall behind her. She closed her eyes, praying that the man hadn't heard anything. She swore she could actually hear her heart beating rapidly in her chest and was vaguely aware of someone calling her name.

"Aria? Aria, what's going on? Are you okay?" She heard the operator call out over the phone.

"Yeah. I'm fi…" She started but stopped when she felt herself being pulled up into a standing position from where she was crouched down. She let out a startled scream as the man wearing a hoodie tightened his grip on her upper arm as he angrily glared at her. "What do you think you're doing?" He asked as he glanced at her phone.

"Please, don't hurt me." She pleaded. "Just let me go." She begged as she eyed the knife clutched in his right hand.

"I can't do that." He smirked at her then hit her hard across the face, causing her phone to fly out of her hand. She landed on her front, slightly dazed and let out a cry of pain as her hands made contact with the ground.

"You're gonna regret trying to play hero." He told her as she watched her try to crawl towards her phone which landed a few meters ahead of her. "Stupid little girl." He mumbled as he walked towards her, kicking the phone away from her as it landed under a dumpster.

"No. Please." She begged as she felt him lean closer to where she was. He grabbed the back of her head then banged it into the concrete ground beneath her. All she could do was let out a small scream before she felt a blinding pain. Then darkness…

"Nobody said it was easy, It's such a shame for us to part, Nobody said it was easy, No one ever said it would be this hard, Oh, take me back to the start..." Coldplay - The Scientist