This is what I do: When I start running out of ideas for a current story, I'll start another one just to stay in the practice of writing. I have no clear answers for my process. There are several, I know I want to complete, don't know how(Profile Survival, His Own Hero, Heir), while others I know I need to just delete and move on. I don't like disappointing people.
Chapter Two
Morris
In my mind's eye, I see Jason Gideon standing in front of me, as I hold a picture of Spencer Reid. I feel the same level of disbelief as Hotch did. Except instead of Gideon, it was Colin Esper, and I was looking at a picture of Diana Reid.
"You really think she is ready now?" I asked him.
"You have her CV in front of, Flint. She has more field experience than Spencer Reid did, when he applied."
"Some of it is accidental," I said. "Like the hiking trip in England that led to the discovery of a dead child abductor and his last two living victims. Then there was the incident in Thailand where she identified a drug smuggler at a temple. She also managed tip off the police to a pedophile ring, while volunteering at detention centers, along the border."
"You forgot about the incidents in Nairobi, and China. Not to mention a case on Shoshone land in Nevada. David Rossi could have based an entire series off her life."
"Is she mature enough, at twenty-two?"
"No one is truly mature enough for this job. I think she has the right stuff. She certainly does genetically."
I didn't say anything. The idea of bringing on Spencer Reid's kid, felt like a big commitment.
"I really don't like the idea of breaking in someone so young, especially when we're down two agents."
"She did a minor in occult studies. I think she could help us on this case. Give her a chance."
There was a knock on my door. I opened the door to see FBI Director Dean Crown.
"Director," I said. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Word got around that you're interviewing Diana Reid for a position on your team," he said. "I thought I'd sit in."
"With all due respect sir," Esper said. "Won't having you here be a little intimidating?"
"I don't think so. She will have to be used to intimidating figures to work in the field."
Crown was head of the LA field office, when Reid was active. With thinning red hair, and above average height, he was an intimidating figure.
"Would you like to lead the interview?"
"No, she needs to interact with who she will be viewing as her team."
Crown took a seat along the wall. "Consider me a fly."
I checked my watch, and saw it was time for the interview to start. I opened my door, and saw Diana Reid.
It looked as though she picked her interview outfit out of a catalog. Black blazer, pencil skirt, royal blue blouse, and a chunky silver necklace. Her brown hair with streaks of red, was in a neat ponytail. There were diamond studs in her ears. The purse had slung over her shoulder had a long strap, so it could most likely function as a crossbody purse. Her makeup was neutral, and expression on her face, was controlled.
"Hello SSA Morris," she said and offered a hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
"I understand your father didn't like shaking hands," Crown called out.
She didn't look rattled, as it seemed she was trying to hide her irritation.
"I didn't inherit all his qualities."
I could see Esper resisting the urge to roll his eyes. I felt the same way.
"Have a seat Miss. Reid. You know SSA Esper, and obviously, this is Director Crown."
"A pleasure to meet you," she said and waved.
"So, let's start with an easy question, Miss. Reid: Why do you want to join the BAU?"
"On October fourteenth, I got to know the BAU more intimately than anyone on the planet ever would. The fire that killed them burned beyond sixteen hundred degrees Fahrenheit. I literally breathed in the BAU as I rushed to escape the flames. I breathed in their death, now I want to live the lives they gave."
"Why do you think you survived?" Crown asked.
"I survived because my father used aluminum composite materials to build my treehouse. Any other answers are of speculative nature."
Few people spoke of Spencer Reid as ever having anger control issues. I suspected Diana might be different from him in this regard.
"How do I know you won't seek vengeance?" I asked.
"The case has been cold for fourteen years. I don't think joining the BAU will 'magically' lead to me finding who killed my family. I would like to honor the distinguished legacy my father left behind, by following in his footsteps."
"Who do you think killed your parents and the BAU?" Crown asked.
"I think I don't have access to the information that could lead to what is considered the most currently accurate assessment of the case."
"But what does your gut tell you?" he prompted.
"I'm not in any position to make any sweeping statements."
Her tone was hardened, from growing up fast. It was clear, she was used to being poked and prodded by the Dean Crowns of the world.
Esper opened a file on his tablet.
"Let's have you look at an active case," he said. "What do you think of this scene?"
She glanced at the file. "I'm familiar with the case. You're most likely looking for a Christian fanatic."
"But they were branded with upside-down crosses on their chests in the parking lots of two Satanic temples," Crown said.
"The Satanic Temple was founded in two thousand twelve, to agitate the evangelical right in the United States. They believe in separation of church and state, bodily autonomy, and respect of science."
"So, you believe these crazies have a right to exist?" Crown said.
"I believe that any form of organized worship of a deity can sound 'crazy.' Symbolically eating human flesh every Sunday sounds crazy until you call it the Eucharist at Mass. Rossi also debunked this myth in the eighties."
"I thought off all people, you'd believe in the devil."
"The Satanic Temple doesn't believe in the worship of the devil. They believe in the devil as a symbol of fighting oppression of any form."
"How do you know so much about these creeps?"
"I have a minor in occult studies. I wanted to understand how evil is described in different cultures.
"I want you to consult on the case," I said. "This isn't even a probationary assignment. You have a level of empathy for this group that would go a long way in helping us get access to their membership lists. My team is negotiating with their leader now, and he has a pair of lawyers stonewalling us."
"You want to work with her because she sympathizes with these heathens?" Crown said.
Reid turned her body slightly towards Crown.
"With all due respect, Director, I have seen evil, and I know the concept of the devil takes on the appearance of whatever allows for embodiment of murderous destruction to thrive. The two men who entered my home, and placed bombs in my furnace didn't have horns or wear pentagrams, according to the doorbell camera. If Evil were easy identify and destroy, the BAU wouldn't be in business."
Esper nodded ever so slightly at me. I returned it. Diana Reid struck me as a young woman eager to prove herself, with little patience for BS. She wasn't eager to please, like her father. She hid her nerves with a level of simmering rage, I'd have to watch.