Chapter 28

Split Second

When Spencer and I walked into the office that morning JJ smiled.

"What?" I asked.

"You're a really good singer."

I groaned.

"You saw the video."

She smiled and walked back into her office. I sat down at my desk and Spencer looked at me.

"So is your grandfather gonna walk you down the aisle?" He asked suddenly.

I looked up at him.

"My abuelito died a long time ago. But I'm going to bring my abuelita up here. What about your mom?"

"Of course, but the problem is she doesn't like flying at all."

I smiled and took his hand.

"A simple matter, we have the wedding in Vegas."

"Really?"

I laughed and nodded.

"Of course, if your mom doesn't like flying then we'll make it easier for her."

He smiled.

"I love you."

"Te amo."

He winked and then JJ called us to the round table. She held up a photo of a little girl.

"Amy Lynch, 8 years old, was taken an hour ago from a winter festival in Ashburn." she said.

"Any witnesses?" Prentiss asked.

"Her mom Barbra, was right next to her when she vanished."

I was shocked to say the least.

"Well there must have been hundreds of people there, no one saw anything?" I asked.

JJ shook her head.

"It's a temporary gathering with little to no security." Spencer said.

"Alright Reid you're gonna come with me to the family's house. I want you three to stay and work with Garcia. We need to look at every abduction or attempted one in the past year see if there's any overlap." Morgan said.

They nodded.

"Good news is that we're barely into the second hour." said JJ.

"Yeah well odds are we only have 22 hours left to find Amy alive so let's do this."

Spencer kissed my cheek before he left and I immediately went to Garcia's bunker. I told her what was going on and she shooed me from the room. I smiled a bit and walked outside. Garcia, Prentiss, JJ and I worked nonstop to try and round up all abductions in the last year. I was passing through when I heard the news.

"Amy Lynch of Ashburn was last seen at the winter festival this morning at 10 o'clock. She's 4'8", has blond hair and green eyes. With temperatures below freezing and a chance of snow the pressure is on to find her. Anyone with information please contact the hotline."

I sighed and Prentiss came up next to me.

"We'll find her Freya."

"It's already been a day."

A woman walked up to us and she smelled like alcohol.

"Excuse me, I would like to speak with Agent Jearue." she said.

Emily looked at me.

"Can we help you señora?" I asked.

She looked at the TV then back at me.

"Whoever took Amy Lynch took my son too."

Emily and I looked at each other and then she went to get JJ. I looked at her.

"I'm Agent Freya Delavaga. I'll take you to her office."

"Sarah Hillridge."

I smiled and let her inside.

"What is your son's name Mrs. Hillridge?"

"Miss….his name is Charlie."

I nodded. She looked at my ring and smiled a bit.

"Do you have children?"

"Ah no not yet. I'm getting married this fall."

"That's wonderful."

JJ came in and I started to leave.

"Stay Freya."

I nodded and shut the door. She sat down.

"Need more coffee?"

"OH no, no I'm fine thanks. When are you due?"

I smiled. This woman missed her son so much.

"Uh how's your daughter?" JJ asked.

"Oh Jake took her away."

JJ frowned.

"What?"

"Well he got remarried and though it would be best for Emily to get a fresh start." she said.

My heart broke for her.

"Sorry."

"Well I can't really blame him. I mean look at me."

JJ leaned forward.

"Sarah I…."

"This little girl was eight! Just like Charlie. They were taken almost 8 years apart. Now I have been doing a lot of reading about sexual attraction and….know that prepubescent has the greatest range and also a really huge crossover gender wise."

I closed my eyes.

"I'm sorry you know all of that." JJ said softly.

"I could've gone my whole life without knowing, but then someone took my son." she said.

JJ looked at me and nodded. I left the room. I found Prentiss still at the round table. JJ followed me soon after and Prentiss hung up her phone.

"Okay, got it."

She looked at us.

"Amy's mom was distracted by a woman calling for her lost daughter and she's blaming herself for looking away."

I felt something from JJ and looked at her.

"JJ?"

"Sarah said the same thing when Charlie was taken. Uh, there was a mother searching for her lost son. You think it's a coincidence?"

Prentiss and I looked at each other.

"It could be a rouse."

"Well a mother looking for her lost son that's pretty specific right?" JJ said.

"Add to that a target rich environment with low security, yeah."

"OKay so if the woman was a distraction, who took Amy? A partner?" JJ asked.

"Well if it's the same people, they've been doing this for close to a decade." Prentiss said.

"And they've been getting away with it. But not anymore. I think maybe Sarah's son is still alive JJ." I said.

"I'm starting to think so too."

I looked at the clock running down. We we're running out of time."

I didn't go home that night. I left a message for Spencer letting him know, but I didn't think he would go home either. When he came back to the office I looked at him.

"We're giving up?" I asked him.

"We've done all we can."

I shook my head. We all sat at the round table with Hotch and Rossi.

"Look we all think that Amy could be alive, no one's given up on her. That's why there's hundreds of volunteers and officers combing every inch of the county." said Hotch.

"Yeah but they're drying the rivers and digging up the woods that's not gonna help us if Amy is still with the unsub." Prentiss said.

I nodded.

"What about Charlie?" I looked at Morgan. "Is he still alive?"

"Sarah believes it." JJ said.

"Eight years she's been saying the same thing JJ. Have you thought about why you suddenly believe her?"

Spencer looked at him.

Spencer's POV

Everyone was silent.

"Do you think it might be because you're gonna be a mother?"

"I believe her. And I'm not a mother." said Freya.

I put my hand on her arm to try and calm her.

"It's because another woman just walked in her with the exact same rouse used eight years ago. I can't deny that can you? " JJ answered.

"All I'm saying is that if we go from a single abduction to multiple abductions in 10 years that changes everything. We all have to be convinced that's why it is based on an unbiased profile."

"I'm convinced." Freya said.

I looked at her but she was looking at the ground.

"Okay, distraction of a lost child. Eight year old victims taken from public places with little to no security. That's not just the same rouse, that's a signature. And I am not a mother." Prentiss said.

"Charlie would be sixteen now. We all know that preferential offenders dispose of their victims before they reach puberty." Hotch said.

"Maybe he serves another purpose." JJ suggested.

"Amy's mom said the unsub was slight, wouldn't be easy to keep a teenager under her thumb." Rossi added.

"Except that she's had him since he was eight years old, by now he's completely submissive to her." Freya said.

"Keeping him could explain why Charlie's body was never found." I said.

Freya smiled a little and I did too. Hotch looked worried but he seemed convinced.

"Garcia."

"Sir?"

"Go back ten years nationwide. Start with abductions in target rich environments, rule out any with body recovery dead or alive." Hotch said.

"I'm gonna let Sarah know." JJ said.

"Okay, we need to check out Amy's abduction sight with new eyes. Morgan and Prentiss you go there."

We nodded and Spencer and I decided to help Garcia.