"Those were the exact same words from the note I got in high school—the note that ended with me tied naked to a goal post." Reid's sitting in the passenger seat of the SUV, explaining the conversation to Hotch. Hotch sighs.
"He's insecure, and plans to use you and Bridie in his demonstration of attraction and dominance. It's going to come down to a fight, Reid, and with a broken hand you're not going to be much help." Reid nods. He knows he really screwed up and that a broken hand only hindered Bridie's extraction. He also knew that he hadn't spent the last few months in the gym with Bridie for the fun of it. She'd been training him: running cross country and martial arts, mainly. She wanted him to be ready for anything he could be thrown at when in the field; He wanted nothing more to protect her.
"I know, Hotch," he responds meekly. I'm ready for him, though. He'll wish he was never born.
~CM~CM~CM~CM~CM~
"Thomas Steeple, this is the FBI, open up!" JJ and Rossi stood on either side of the doorway, prepared for the worst. Instead, the door opened to a woman carrying a baby on her hip.
"I'm Mary Steeple, Thomas' wife. He's not here at the moment, but you're more than welcome to come in. I'll answer any questions I can." The two agents step in to an immaculately clean home. They've holstered their weapons, but keep eyes open for anything suspicious. "Please, do sit. Would you like a cup of tea?" Rossi shakes his head, but JJ accepts politely. A cup of warm chai tea is placed in front of JJ, and Mary Steeple sits down. "Now, what do I owe the pleasure?"
"We're actually looking for your brother-in-law, Andy. I regret to say it, but he's a suspect in multiple murders and a current abduction." Mary puts a hand over her worried mouth, clear shock on her face. JJ raises her eyebrows to Rossi; because it's evident she had no idea what he had done.
"Andrew? Are you sure it's Andrew?" JJ nods to the woman, who lets out a shaky sigh. "He came to me last month and asked to stay here. He and Thomas had a falling out a few years ago, after their father passed away, so I couldn't let him stay. I gave him money to stay at a hotel, and I've sent him some cash since then. I can't believe he'd do such a thing." JJ holds the woman's hand in hopes to console her.
"Mrs. Steeple, where did you say your husband was?" Rossi was curious as to whether or not he had been helping his brother.
"He's at a work conference until Wednesday. I just spoke with him this morning." As she realizes the question, she shakes her head. "Thomas would never. He and Andrew stopped talking years ago after Andrew…" The color from her face drains.
"Mrs. Steeple, what is it?" JJ asks, concerned by the woman's silence.
"Their father, Allen, passed away in early January of 2008. Andrew ran off, and Thomas was worried sick about him. He travelled all the way to upstate New York to find him. When they came back, Thomas said Andrew was welcome to clean up but wasn't welcome to stay. It was unnerving, to see Thomas so hurt and dark about the situation. I remember hearing them argue over bones. I didn't understand it then, and I didn't try to comprehend. Could that have something to do with this current case?" JJ looks to Rossi, who looks down at the table. Part of her femur had been removed.
"Mrs. Steeple, we need to know where your husband is staying."
~CM~CM~CM~CM~CM~
"Morgan," JJ says through the phone, "Garcia is tracking details for us right now. She's going to call you with the results." Morgan bunches his eyebrows in confusion.
"What kind of results?" JJ sighs, not wanting to go through too much of an explanation.
"She's checking Thomas Steeple's alibi to make sure he's not part of Bridie's abduction. More importantly, he may have helped Andy cover up the abduction at Juilliard. Either way, Garcia is trying to get a location on him, and possibly have him brought to the station for questioning."
"Got it JJ, thanks for the update." With a click, Morgan is gone, and JJ is left to wonder if her team, her own little family, will every recover from this.
~CM~CM~CM~CM~CM~
"Morgan, we're here," Hotch says from his perch in the SUV. They were parked about a block from the school, making them still close enough to observe.
"Copy that," Morgan says, putting the phone on speaker. "Thomas Steeple, do you know where your brother is?"
"No," the worn, muffled reply says through phone. "I haven't seen Andy since our dad died." Morgan clicks his tongue.
"You travelled all the way to New York to find him, isn't that right?" Thomas nods, but then stutters a 'yes' in response. "And how did you know that's where he was going?"
"I had no idea. I figured he was headed to New Jersey, to visit our maternal side of the family and cool down or something. When he wasn't there, I kept heading up the east coast. Eventually I landed in New York."
"Not just in New York, but in a specific location. Juilliard, correct?" Thomas licks his lips and takes an uneven breath in. "That's right, Thomas, we know you were there. We know you covered for your brother."
"Look, Andy always liked being in control. Dad died and he had no control over that. So he went out and found something he could be in control of. I was lucky I found him before he did something really stupid." He sighs again, running a hand through his slicked-back hair. "What is this all about, anyway? Certainly not a case from seven years ago." It's Morgan's turn to take a deep breath. He pulls out the pictures of the women that were murdered. Thomas shies away, pushing the pictures from him. The last pictures Morgan lays down is Bridie's ID badge picture and a still-frame picture in the parking lot at the sanitarium. Thomas Steeple goes pale.
"That is Agent Bridget McDuffy. She's been abducted by your brother for what I'm assuming is the second time. Only, this time, she's a lot more dangerous than the piano-playing girl she used to be. And she has her team to back her up—the father of her son, her fiancé, and her angry, Italian father being some of them. So start talking. Why does Andy want her?" Thomas frowns.
"She's beautiful, talented, smart, and feisty. It's the perfect storm that he wanted dominance over, a challenge. He was upset that I was engaged to Mary, that he still had no one, and that some kid he went to high school with was more outstandingly achieved than Andy ever would be. Everything just built up, I guess." Thomas sighs and folds into his hands. "I made sure she was in her dorm room before I brought him home, made sure he knew how stupid and badly he fucked up. I let him wash up at my place, and I haven't spoken to him since. How was I supposed to know he'd go after her again?" Morgan clicks the phone off speaker.
"You get all that, Hotch? It's definitely him."
"I got all of it. Thanks, Morgan." Hotch hangs up his phone, and looks over to the empty passenger seat. Sometime during the phone call, Reid snuck out of the car. Shit, he's practically defenseless out there. Hotch dials Morgan back. "Morgan. We need back up. NOW."