Chapter 38-Confession

Reid listened patiently while Cummings told his story, explaining everything from when Chris first approached him and Jared about killing Hotch. He added that Chris had told them that 'she' had asked him to kill the federal agent, and he complied. And when Michael had asked who 'she' was, Chris wouldn't say. But he figured it had to be Chris's boss, Beth Clemmons, because Chris would often tell them his boss's crazy obsession with the agent. Reid turned his head slightly as something struck him about what Cummings just said. Something strange. But he had no idea what nagged at him at that precise moment. So, to find out, the young agent proceeded to ask several questions.

"So he never told you who 'she' might be?" Reid asked. He crossed his long legs and brushed a few loose strands of hair out of his eyes. He folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. Michael shook his head in the negative.

"I just assumed he meant his boss from what he kept telling us. I mean, he made her sound like a loose cannon, y'know." He looked into Reid's eyes as if silently pleading with the agent to believe him.

"Why did you assume it was Beth Clemmons?"

Cummings shrugged. "Who else could it be? He would tell us she would regale him with her stories about Hotchner and how she believed he's the right man for her, and intended to make him hers."

"Did Chris ever tell you if Beth stated how she intended to do that?"

"I have no idea. Since she sounded crazy, I didn't want to think about it."

"Tell me about the murder itself. How did it come about, Michael?"

Michael swallowed the lump in his throat as his mind returned to that awful morning. Tears began to roll down the man's cheeks as he recalled what had been the most horrible and nightmarish day of his life.

"We…hid behind several bushes and watched Hotchner through a window. We didn't see anybody else. Chris had told us the agent's wife had already left the house as he had seen her car drive away. We didn't see his kid. But Chris told us the kid wasn't in the house, and we needed to get it done before the agent's old lady got back from the gym. He…he had a dart gun in his waistband and gave it to Jared. That's when we approached the house, and Chris rang the bell."

Reid seemed startled. How did he know Jack wasn't home?

"Were both you and Jared with him when he did that?"

"No. Jared and I entered through the back entrance of the house. It was unlocked. Chris figured Hotchner might become suspicious if he spotted two strangers with him, so he told us to go around back. I figured he knew beforehand the door would be unlocked, and wanted us to enter that way." He chuckled. "I don't know how he knew but he did. And I didn't ask him. He gets real mad if someone butts into his personal business or asks a lot of questions."

"And did you go in through the back door?"

Cummings nodded. "I really felt badly doing this. I mean….I didn't want to, but you have no idea what Chris is like when he's angry. He can be downright cruel." The tears increased. "That poor little boy! God, I'm so, so sorry!"

Reid swallowed the building lump in his throat as he watched the suspect fall apart in front of him. And as he now sat and listened about how his boss, friend, and mentor died, he forced himself to keep calm. He uncrossed his legs and shifted in his seat. He leaned forward with hands clasped on top of the table. His eyes never left Cummings' face.

"Michael, in order for me to help you, I need you to tell me everything."

Cummings wiped his eyes with the back of his hands. His red eyes looked at Reid. "We…that is…Jared and I quietly entered through the back door and could hear Chris and Hotchner still talking. I…Hotchner suddenly reach for his gun. Jared fired the dart gun and hit him in the neck. Chris walked over to Jared as Hotchner went down to his knees, and removed a gun from Jared's waistband. It belonged to his grandmother." He paused to lick his dry lips. "Jared had shown it to me and Chris one time." He exhaled deeply and continued. "Once the drug took effect, Hotchner lay on his back trying to get up again. Jared had a hammer in his hand by then. He hit him with it over and over and over until Hotchner didn't move anymore. I saw…I…after Jared nearly beat him to death, Hotchner still tried to get to his feet. He…I couldn't believe he was still alive. That's when Chris shot him twice. Afterward, Chris checked him and said he was dead. He…he had a smile on his face when he said it."

Reid's eyebrows knitted. He already knew what had happened to Hotch, and didn't really want to hear it again.

"What happened after Agent Hotchner died?"

Cummings sighed wearily. "Chris ordered Jared to take the contents of the knapsack, and to plant them in Hotchner's gun safe. Then he verbally gave him the combination to the gun safe. There was a kilo of heroin, a ledger, and a slip of paper with the name of a bank and a box number on it in the knapsack."

"How did you know the contents of the knapsack?"

"Chris put everything in a knapsack in front of us before we left to take care of business as Chris referred to it."

"Who got the heroin?"

Michael shrugged. "I'm not sure. I think it might have been Jared. He's been known to use sometimes."

"And where did the money come from found in the bank?"

"I have no idea how or from where Chris got all the money. He told me he stole at least fifty-thousand from Beth's account without her knowledge because he told me he did. Said he'd been doing it for awhile. I have no idea where he got the rest of it. Maybe he sweet talked his boss into giving him more money to kill Hotchner."

Reid could feel the bile rising in his throat, but managed to keep himself from losing the contents of his stomach.

"Beth Clemmons gave her subordinate, Chris Hayes, a million dollars…" he repeated with eyes a little wider. Michael shrugged.

"That's what he told us anyway," Cummings added. "Considering she's crazy, wouldn't surprise me if she gave him all of it willingly."

Reid sensed Michael was telling him the truth. Still, it didn't keep him from thinking that something was still strange. He continued with his questions.

"Michael, one thing bothers me. How did Chris have the combination to the gun safe? Agent Hotchner would have been the only one to have it, and he wouldn't give that information out."

"I didn't ask him how he got it. I already told you, Doctor Reid. Chris gets real mean when somebody asks him a lot of questions. So I just went along with whatever he said."

"Did Chris ever tell you why Beth wanted Agent Hotchner killed?" he asked with arched eyebrows.

"He said something about his boss being obsessed with this agent and him refusing her advances or something. Said in her delusional state, she claimed Hotchner to be as in love with her as she with him. And that she was enraged when he chose his wife over her. Claims she said she'd make Hotchner pay."

Reid was puzzled by something. "If she was enraged by Agent Hotchner choosing his wife over her, and was going to make him pay, common sense would be for her to kill Mrs. Hotchner instead. But no, she kills the object of her affection instead. That doesn't make any sense at all."

Michael could only stare at the young agent in confusion. Suddenly Reid got a strange look on his face.

"Excuse me," he uttered as he jumped up from his chair and bolted for the door. He suddenly realized what had bothered him throughout the interrogation, and had to find Rossi. He suddenly realized who had murdered Aaron Hotchner.

Reid stood outside the interrogation room looking one way and then the other, hoping to find at least one of his teammates. Not seeing anybody, he jogged down the hall and around a corner and discovered the others, Will, and Detective Brandeis. At the sound of approaching footsteps, they all turned. Reid pulled up beside them, a bit out of breath.

"Rossi…" Reid panted.

"Take it easy, Spence," JJ said putting a hand on Reid's arm.

"I'm okay," Reid puffed. "Cummings confessed and told me everything."

"That's great, kid," Rossi replied. "Because we didn't get much of anything from Shelton or Hayes, and Hayes has asked for a lawyer. Each one's blaming the other. So I hope you have some good news for us."

Reid got his breathing under control. "Something Cummings said didn't make sense to me at first. Then, the more he talked, the more I realized what had been bothering me."

"Well? You gonna keep it to yourself or what?" asked Morgan, impatient. "Spit it out, Pretty Boy."

"Sorry. When I asked Cummings to tell me about the murder, he said Chris told both him and Jared that she had wanted Hotch killed."

"So?" asked Morgan now confused. "We all know Beth told him to murder Hotch. That's nothing new."

"We've been looking at this the wrong way," Reid began excitedly as he was wont to do. He became quite animated with his hands. "He said Chris told him that's what she wanted. Not that's what Beth wanted. If Beth wanted Hotch dead, why didn't he just say it was Beth who wanted Hotch dead? After he went through all that trouble to frame her, it would have been just as easy to say her name."

"Makes sense," Rossi agreed. "Why hide that fact from his partners and then go through all that trouble to make us believe that she was behind Aaron's death? As delusional as she is, it wouldn't be difficult to blame her from the beginning."

But Reid wasn't finished. "He also said he and Shelton entered Hotch's home through the back door. It was unlocked. Who unlocked it? It could only be unlocked from inside the house. And how did Hayes know the door was unlocked?"

"What else did he say?" Prentiss asked seeing where Reid was going as something started to nag at her insides.

"He told me Chris sent Jared to Hotch's bedroom to plant the heroin, ledger and safe deposit box information. And that he got the combination from Chris. How did Chris come to have the combination to Hotch's gun safe? Hotch wouldn't give that out to anybody."

"Hayes wouldn't unless somebody had given it to him," JJ interjected. She didn't like where this conversation was heading either.

Strange thoughts were beginning to invade Rossi's head, and he didn't like where they were leading him. "Reid, did Cummings have any idea why Aaron was killed?" His eyebrows were knitted together.

"I'm coming to that. He said when they were outside Hotch's home, they didn't see Jack. Cummings said Chris told him Jack wasn't home…"

"How did he know Hotch's son wasn't in the house?" Will interrupted folding his arms. "The only ones who would know that would be Hotch, Haley and maybe Jessica."

"Exactly. And as why Hotch was killed, all Cummings said was that Chris told them Beth was enraged when Hotch and Haley reconciled. She told Chris she wanted to make him pay for rejecting her."

"But that doesn't make any sense," said Brandeis. "If she wanted to make Hotchner pay, why didn't she kill his wife instead? With her out of the way, she would have a clear path to him."

"One would think so," Reid continued as if nobody had spoken. "I mean, anything's possible. And some jilted women do kill their lovers believing if she can't have him, then nobody will. But Beth didn't kill Hotch despite having every opportunity. No. She couldn't kill the object of her affections. It made no sense."

Morgan looked thoughtful. "So what you're sayin', kid, is that Beth Clemmons may not have wanted Hotch dead?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. It makes no sense for her to have killed Hotch. She couldn't get him if she killed him."

"Wait a minute…" Brandeis' eyes darkened. "Beth Clemmons poisoned your boss with arsenic and sent him to the hospital…"

"But it was not enough to kill him," Rossi pointed out quickly. "She could have given him enough arsenic to kill him, and everybody would have simply thought he died from a bad case of the flu. She had ample opportunity. Carl, like it or not, it's possible Beth Clemmons may not have killed Aaron after all."

"How can you say that, Dave? She stalked the guy. She poisoned him. Chris Hayes is her employee. He even got two of his friends to help him."

"But not enough to kill him," Rossi reminded him. "She gave him just enough to make him sick."

"But why would she do that?" asked Brandeis. He folded his arms across his chest.

"To prove to Aaron she could get to him at any time she wanted. She wanted to scare him into believing if she could get to him with no problems that she might go after his family next."

"And Hotch would do anything to protect those he loved from harm. Even if it cost him his own life," Will added.

"Also, there were no threats made against either Haley, her sister, or Jack," JJ pointed out. "So if she was so enamored with Hotch, why not take from him what he loved the most as a way of making him pay for rejecting her."

"So what are you saying exactly?" asked Brandeis. "That Beth Clemmons didn't kill Agent Hotchner?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, yes," said Rossi. "She and the happy trio stalked Aaron since she first saw him. She even tried to convince us there was something going on between her and Hotch. She was upset when he rejected her advances. So that's when she decided to feed him arsenic slowly over time. And the reason she went to the hospital by pretending to be his sister was so Hotch would know she was responsible for him being where he was."

"What about those incidents Agent Hotchner was involved in every year on the date of that federal trial involving that drug dealer? Was she involved in that also?"

"No. That was all Mercer Duncan," Rossi wrapped his arms around himself. "Even though Aaron lost that case as a prosecutor, Duncan was enraged that Aaron tried to prosecute him. He became even angrier when Aaron refused to accept a bribe from him to purposely blow the case against him. So Duncan got others to sabotage Aaron's case so he would lose it. So every year on the date of his trial, he caused an accident so Hotch would never forget what happened on that date years ago. So when Chris Hayes came along with orders to kill Aaron, Duncan was more than glad to donate a kilo of heroin to use to set Hotch up and make him appear dirty. They wanted to make it look like Aaron was killed because he was dealing drugs. This way Duncan would have his revenge against Hotch without anybody knowing he was involved."

"And to think it almost worked," Prentiss interjected sadly. "Especially if Strauss had been successful."

"And the money in the safe deposit box?" asked Brandeis.

"Chris Hayes came up with the money," Reid replied. "But that raises the issue as to where would somebody like Chris Hayes get that much money? Cummings said Chris had admitted to stealing fifty thousand dollars from Beth's account. But that doesn't account for the rest of the money."

After a few seconds, Morgan spoke up first. "A life insurance policy perhaps?" He glanced at the others to see the same thing had occurred to them.

"Unbelievable," Brandeis muttered. "So if Beth Clemmons didn't kill Agent Hotchner, then who did?" He looked at each agent and then finally resting on Will.

"There's only one other person," Will explained. "Somebody who we never would have suspected who had everything to gain from Hotch's death."

"You mean his widow, don't you?"

"Um hmm. The grieving widow, Haley Hotchner," Rossi admitted with surprise, dismay, and mostly anger.