Eᴘɪsᴏᴅᴇ: Pʀᴇ Sᴇᴀsᴏɴ 1
Driving into the Twenty Nine Palms base was a reality check that I hadn't been prepared for and I swallowed my nerves as we began approaching a large building. This was my first time in any kind of military establishment and I had to admit that I felt entirely out of my depth. There was an overbearing sensation of always being watched and I was acutely aware of how little I knew about military culture, other than that converses would probably not give the best impression.
The driver opened the car door for me and again took my case, treating me with more courtesy than I'd ever received at Interpol. He led me into the bland halls of the building and I kept my eyes firmly trained on his back until I reached something familiar. He placed my case just outside of a small dark room filled with screens and stepped aside for me to catch a glimpse of puffy blonde hair.
"Thank you, Harris. This is the most important delivery that I've had this year." Penelope breezed from inside before she came charging toward me to wrap her arms around my shoulders and my driver promptly left us to reunite.
"I missed you so much! It's great to have you back." She muttered, surrounding me with her fruity scent as she clung to me and although I'd previously been comfortable with contact from her, my increased anxiety caused me to rush out of her grip barely seconds into the embrace.
"It's great to be back." I responded quietly, forcing a smile which I knew she had noticed was fake and I attempted to distract her from it by turning her attention to our workspace. "This certainly looks crowded. Where do you want me to set up?"
"I've left a space for your laptop here, sugar plum. You can set it up ready to support me if I find anything that I need backup with, but from what I've heard, Hotch has plans for you to take on a different role this time." She explained, pointing to a spot on a small desk beside her workstation and although this statement made my stomach flip, I focused on getting straight into action.
Penelope returned to her seat to continue her investigations, whilst I made a start on preparing my laptop for use. I noticed straight away that she had already plugged in adapters to the nearby plug sockets for me and smiled in appreciation. She was always considerate of my needs and at times, I wondered what I had done to deserve a friend like her.
The moment that I'd finished getting everything ready, she hopped to her feet and motioned for me to follow her.
"Hotch asked me to bring you to the meeting room as soon as you were ready. Don't worry about any military men giving you grief, it's just our team in there at the moment." She described as she led me with a bounce in her step and I hummed thoughtfully as I absorbed her words. It was clear that she had already noticed my discomfort and her wording caused me to relax slightly, as it seemed that she'd blamed my anxiety mostly on our location rather than the darker causes that I wasn't keen to discuss.
"Oh, just a heads up that Gideon is still on medical leave, so the boys will be especially happy to have an extra pair of hands. Teams looking pretty small at the minute." She added cautiously with an encouraging smile over her shoulder and I nodded in understanding.
There was a certain tension in the air throughout the base that kept me on edge and though Penelope's sunshine personality seemed immune to its effects, I had already begun ensuring that I didn't make contact with anyone, attempting to be as invisible as possible as we navigated through the labyrinth of the building. Penelope charged straight into the meeting room with confidence, completely unphased that she was interrupting.
"Attention everyone. Look who's here!" She announced, indicating back to me with a wide smile and I made every effort to seem relaxed as the BAU members turned to view me. Sitting around the table that was almost totally covered in paperwork were Hotchner, Morgan and Reid, all looking rather disheveled from the strain of the case already.
"Oh, hey! If it isn't Mary Poppins herself." Morgan breezed as he got to his feet to shake my hand first and though his touch made my spine stiffen involuntarily, I forced myself through it. Though his smile was kind and genuine, his eyes seemed as if they were profiling me already and I worried at what his scrutiny might discover that I preferred to keep hidden.
"Welcome back, Agent Hawthorne." Hotchner called from the head of the table and indicated for me to take a seat, prompting Penelope to leave with a subtly reassuring smile at me as she crept out.
Without hesitation, I followed this direction and positioned myself at the table in a specific seat where I could still clearly see both exits, allowing an empty seat between me and anyone else. I noticed Reid watching me out of the corner of my eye and when I glanced over at him, he waved shyly at me. I waved back with a fond smile, before turning to address Hotchner.
"Thank you for inviting me, Agent Hotchner. I'm honoured that you would go to the trouble, Sir." I answered honestly, still feeling confused about his intentions for me, especially after Penelope's earlier comment.
The reasoning had been bugging me ever since I received the call informing me that I had been assigned to this case. The BAU already had Penelope to assist them on the technical angle and I was sure that it would have been easier to have loaned some agents from another team to bolster their numbers, than drafting me all the way from France. So, what was it that made them think that they needed me specifically?
"We appreciate you coming so quickly." Hotchner replied, making an obvious effort to soften his tone and I nodded politely in return. "As I'm sure you are aware, this is a highly sensitive case that will need to be carefully handled. Garcia has been granted access to the base systems, but even so, the information that we've been able to obtain is still limited. We're in the dark here." He summarised, before glancing at Morgan.
"Here's what we do know. Amanda Franklin was taken 22 hours ago from somewhere on this base, leaving only a note that was addressed to Colonel Franklin. We've been given files on everyone here, but trying to find someone with the right motive amongst all of this red tape will take weeks. Amanda doesn't have that long." Morgan explained, causing me to fidget in unease as I glanced over the mountain of paperwork, until Reid cleared his throat.
"The statistics for children that are abducted and murdered show that 44% die within the first hour. 75% are gone within 3 hours and practically all of them are dead after 24." Reid reported, causing a crushing weight of responsibility to drop on my chest and I glanced around the table doubtfully.
"So, if we're going to stand any chance of finding Amanda alive, we have to find her in the next two hours? And the odds are that we're probably already substantially too late?" I asked, feeling as if we were defeated before we'd even begun and Hotchner nodded solemnly at me.
"That's why we've enlisted your help. We've been here for hours already, attempting to build a profile, but nothing thus far has led us to Amanda." Hotchner addressed me, directing his intense gaze at me and I felt as if I'd somehow given the impression that I was far more capable than I actually was. "Garcia has told us of your past history with finding people, even under the constraints of working remotely and without support from law enforcement. Considering the time limit, I would like for you to lend us the full range of your skills. Morgan will take you to the home and potential abduction site to see if there's anything that we missed the first time around."
I turned to look at Morgan for confirmation and though I felt as if I might die from shock at this revelation, he seemed completely at ease with the situation. For a moment, I wondered if I'd misheard somehow, but Morgan promptly got to his feet and tapped on my shoulder expectantly.
"Sir, are you sure that you want me in the field? I have no experience." I blurted, meeting Hotchner's eyes with a blatant uncertainty and was honestly baffled by the confidence that he displayed as he viewed me.
"You have a higher success rate for the safe recovery of abduction victims than any other bureau employee, Agent Hawthorne. I'm sure." He answered firmly, the slightest hint of a smile in the corner of his lips and I glanced between him and Morgan reluctantly. "Morgan will remain at your side at all times. If you have any concerns, you can trust him with them." He added and with a final defeated sigh, I got to my feet to stand beside him.
"Don't worry, kid. You're in safe hands with me." Morgan smiled, before striding from the room with me trailing along behind him.
- O - O - O - O - O -
Morgan stood at the door, whilst I wandered around the bedroom in an effort to find something useful. It didn't seem at all like a teenage girls room, with no posters or photos, muted coloured walls and plain bedding. The entire space seemed more reflective of an adult woman and I quickly noticed that something was missing. I turned to face Morgan in confusion.
"Plenty of books but, where's the technology?" I asked, as I glanced around at the perfectly organised space and Morgan smiled at me as if he was impressed with my observation. "I mean, I'm a bookworm myself but even I have basic essentials. A thirteen year old girl with no laptop, no tv, no mp3 player?"
"Dad says she has a phone and they watch tv together in the living room. As for the internet, he doesn't let her use it out of sight, so she can only access it on the family laptop in the dining room." He answered and I raised my brows in surprise, before turning to examine the space again. "We've already combed through this room. There's nothing useful here that isn't obvious. Amanda lives a military life. Her room reflects a strict upbringing, everything organised as it would be in the barracks. She views herself as an adult, likely making up for the absence of her mom. She's trying to be the perfect kid for her dad."
"So, where's her outlet?" I suggested, causing Morgan to knit his brows together as he considered my question. "This kid has every moment of her life monitored. She goes to a military school, lives on a base, every friend she has is right here, under her dad's nose. She's not allowed a boyfriend, no unsupervised internet access, no clubs or hobbies. What early teen would be able to endure that without finding some way to cut loose?"
"Amanda doesn't think of herself that way." Morgan reminded me simply and I shook my head at him. "Look at this room, Hawthorne. There's no self expression, no experimentation and definitely no way to break the rules. Amanda already considers herself matured and responsible. Rebellion would go against her need for approval."
"She thinks that she's an adult, sure. But biologically, she's still a pre teen girl with hormones and mood swings. Every kid goes through a need to break the mold somehow at this age, even just in a small way. A kid under this much pressure would feel it even more. So, how is she managing it?" I questioned, beginning to pace around the room frustratedly and Morgan watched me with interest.
"Sounds like you had some interesting teenage years." He remarked with a smirk and I rolled my eyes at him as I desperately wracked my brain for something that I was missing.
"Alright. Let's say that you're right. She needs to find a way to rebel that her dad won't ever find. Her dad is in every inch of her business; even how she organises her room is dictated by him. I wouldn't be surprised if he does spot inspections here. How would she hide it from him?" Morgan began to guide my thought process and I allowed my gaze to roam over the items in the room again, until something occurred to me.
"Amanda turned thirteen six months ago, right? So she's probably already started her periods." I theorised, judging Morgan's reaction as part of my idea and the moment that he grimaced, I knew that I was onto something. "There's no mum or female figure in the house. It's just her and her dad, which means she's dealing with that stuff on her own. What's the one place that her dad wouldn't look now?" I explained as I strode over to her bedside table and pulled the top drawer open, throwing aside the underwear in search of anything deviant.
"Hawthorne, you really going through this kids panty drawer?" He groaned as I tossed aside her garments and a huge supply of menstrual supplies, more than she could possibly need for anything other than warding off her father. When I finally reached my prize, I held up a tattered diary for Morgan's attention and he sighed in disbelief. "Well, I'll be damned. That kid exploited her dad's discomfort. Smart."
"Let's get this back to the office. Reid could have this whole thing read before we even make a dent."
- O - O - O - O - O -
"Enjoying the chronicles of teenage drama, pretty boy?" Morgan teased, as Reid's face grew increasingly confused with every page that he flicked through in the diary and I chuckled to myself. Watching him read was already fascinating, but the expressions that he made whilst enduring the personal writings of our abductee were especially entertaining.
"You know, the inner workings of a thirteen year old girl's mind were not what I imagined I would be studying when I joined the FBI." He answered, keeping his focus on working through the diary at an impossible speed and I continued my study of the family's laptop.
I'd decided that it made more sense to analyse this in the meeting room, where I could cross reference with anything that Reid found, but that hadn't happened yet. The further that I dug into her internet usage, the less the information that we'd been given made sense and I rubbed at my temples in stress. Morgan quickly noticed my reaction and thinned his eyes at me.
"You managing alright with all of this, Poppins? This is pretty far out of your usual realm." He investigated, levelling me with a worried expression and I forced a smile as I met his eyes.
"I'm fine. It feels strange being away from the desk, but kinda nice too. Usually I have to wait for other people to look into things for me. It's much easier actually doing them myself." I explained carefully and although he nodded, I could tell that there were additional concerns that he held about me that he was unsure on how to address.
"I might have something here." Reid interrupted and I sighed in relief as he distracted Morgan from his analysis of me. "A month ago, Amanda started talking to someone who told her they had information about her mother. She refers to them as Mr Todd." He divulged, causing Morgan and I to glance at each other in concern.
"Garcia already pulled all of her phone records. There's no one on there that she communicates with other than her dad and best friend Hannah. She barely even uses the thing." Morgan stated, seeming as lost by this revelation as I felt. "Is there anything about a Mr Todd on her online activity?"
"Nothing even close. Honestly, there's very little usage on her account on this either. It's strange." I thought aloud, causing Morgan to look at me questioningly and I cleared my throat, unused to being asked for my opinion. "Considering how little contact this kid has with technology, the way that she uses it is still advanced. She's confident, she types fast and she uses a lot of text talk. She hasn't got that from nowhere. It's possible that our girl has a second phone that daddy doesn't know about. Maybe one specifically given to her to speak to this Mr Todd." I theorised, noticing that Reid glanced up from the diary to flash me an interested look.
"The name is likely an alias. From all of her entries, it doesn't seem like Amanda ever actually met this person at any point. She was cautious of them." He advised, before placing the journal down to return his attention to the note that had been left for her father. "There were a few references in this letter that seemed strange, but I couldn't place them until now. The unsub refers to Colonel Franklin as one of the privileged few, stating that he views his lower ranking officers as little more than vermin. We thought it showed an inferiority complex, but it might have a deeper meaning. See this line here, the lives of the wicked should be made brief-"
"Sweeney Todd!" I exclaimed, quickly covering my mouth apologetically for cutting him off, but Reid simply smiled at me in surprise. "Sorry, I read a lot. It's one of my favourite musicals too, so the lyrics tend to live in my head rent free. It's a strange choice to use in this context, though." I added, watching Reid's smile only grow wider at my revelation and he opened his mouth to speak with an air of excitement about him, but Morgan jumped into the pause in conversation.
"So, all we've got is a fake name, a relative area where her phone last pinged and a creepy note with some weird musical references? There has to be something that we're missing. This girl was raised to be careful and mature. She wouldn't just wander off with a stranger." He stated, the frustration beginning to show in his mannerisms and I could understand his plight considering the time scale that we were working to. "What's the situation with her mom?" Morgan asked and we both faced Reid in the hope that the diary may have revealed something.
"Amy Franklin drowned in '98 in a boating accident. Amanda was visiting her dad at the time, but always suspected that there was something more to it." He recapped, as he resumed flicking through the pages and I considered carefully how this could have affected our victim, as Morgan moved to begin pacing around impatiently.
"This unsub knew that Amanda had doubts about her mothers death. The only way that he could know that is if he's close to the family. It's not the kind of thought that you would share openly, especially if you're raised in the military. Amanda's reserved, quiet and controlled. Her last known location was on this base. Colonel Franklin locked it down as soon as he realised that she was missing and Garcia already checked all the surveillance for every exit, from the time that she finished school. There's no way the unsub could have left with her. She's right here somewhere." Morgan ranted, running his hands over his head in a gesture of stress, before picking up a photo of Amanda. "Who are you with?" He muttered under his breath and Reid looked up again from the diary.
"Did you know that Sweeney Todd first appeared as the villain of the Victorian penny dreadful series The String Of Pearls? The original tale was much simpler, with Todd simply being portrayed as a barber who murdered his customers with little rhyme or reason for doing so. It was only in '73 when Christopher Bond adapted the story into a musical that the character was deepened to have more sympathetic motivations." Reid explained, before furrowing his brows and seeming as if he'd reminded himself of something.
"It's possible that our unsub might see the Colonel as Todd. In the musical story, which is far more commonly known, Todd turns to killing after Judge Turpin has him wrongly convicted and takes his wife from him. He returns after his sentence to find that his wife has died and his daughter was taken in as a ward by the Judge. Colonel Franklin lost his wife to tragedy and that could be enough to cause an association. Perhaps the unsub was even involved in Amy's death and as a result, he feels compelled to fulfil the role of the Judge by taking Amanda." He added, causing Morgan to immediately get on the phone to Penelope, who still had Hotchner in her office reviewing the names of everyone on the base.
"Hey, babygirl. I need you to work your magic for me." Morgan crooned into the phone, before he launched into a full recap of the conversation that we'd just had.
I stared at the note on the table, lost in thought as I attempted to understand how our unsub could possibly have interpreted the story to his needs and Reid cleared his throat to draw my attention, silently asking with his expression what I was thinking.
"Why call himself Todd?" I grumbled, picking up the note to read again as I struggled to fit the pieces of the case together and overheard Morgan eliminating anyone who could have been present at Amy's death as a possible suspect. "If the unsub sees Colonel Franklin as Sweeney Todd, then why would he want Amanda to refer to him as Mr Todd? It wouldn't fit with his delusion."
"It would certainly cause a disconnect between the way that the unsub sees himself and how Amanda sees him." Reid responded, seeming equally unnerved by this flaw in our theory and Morgan had already begun sounding frustrated by the lack of results on his call.
"What if we're looking at this the wrong way around?" I wondered, causing Reid to only seem more confused in a manner that was honestly pretty adorable. "We're looking at this note as confirmation that this unsub is suffering a delusion that urges him to replicate parts of the story. What if he's not delusional? I mean, he managed to snatch Amanda as if she disappeared into thin air and he even left a note without being spotted, on a military base no less! That takes a level of organisation and self awareness. The references to Sweeney Todd could simply be hinting at the parallels in his own life, meant as a taunt to the Colonel. Everything in this note points towards someone seeking vengeance. Perhaps he simply identifies with the feeling of injustice in the writing, rather than the key points of the story itself?" I suggested, causing Reid's eyes to widen as he sat up straight.
"In which case, he would view himself as Todd, not Franklin. Garcia, can you look into anyone who has been close to the family again. This time, look for someone who has suffered a loss, perhaps a wife, or even a child?" He listed off commonalities between the story and regular experiences of military staff, and I followed his train of thought with interest. "The cause of death would likely have been something that Franklin was either personally involved in, or something that he authorised. There has to be a reason that the unsub is blaming him specifically." He added, whilst I nodded in agreement and Penelope made a celebratory sound over the phone.
"Bingo! I have one Matthew Logan in my results. He served with Franklin way back, before he became the man in charge. He was close to the family for years, pretty much knew Amanda since she was born. He lost his wife last year whilst she was on deployment in Egypt. She was a soldier in Franklin's unit who was on her final service, before she planned to take early retirement. It wasn't discovered until her autopsy that she was actually pregnant. Sounds like she hadn't even told her husband yet. Didn't want to let her squad down." Penelope reported, her voice cracking with emotion toward the end and Morgan frowned as he viewed us.
"In his mind, Franklin took everything from him. He's trying to return the favour." He breathed, his expression every bit as furious as mine and I cursed under my breath. "Sweetness, can you get me an address for Logan?"
"Bad news, I'm afraid. Matthew Logan was medically discharged from service six months ago due to mental health issues following the loss of his wife. He moved to an address in Montana." Penelope replied, leaving us all feeling deflated as the lead vanished before our eyes. "However, I can check his previous address in the base, if you can give me a minute to...umm, guys. It's right next to where Amanda's phone last pinged. I didn't notice it before because it's supposed to be empty."
"We need to get there now. Hawthorne, that means you too." Hotchner ordered over the phone and I felt my eyes widen in shock. "You'll go with Morgan. Reid, you're with me. Let's go."
- O - O - O - O - O -
My legs shook uncontrollably as Morgan strapped the bulletproof vest across my torso and I tried to contain my anxiety to little success. Part of me was excited to be able to experience a girl being rescued in person, instead of waiting for confirmation over the phone, but the rest of me was mostly terrified at the number of military personnel that were being prepped around us.
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to, you know. Hotch will understand." Morgan advised quietly, meeting my eyes with an obvious concern and I shook my head at him resolutely.
"No. It's fine. I can do it. I want to help bring Amanda home." I argued, forcing my voice into my best attempt at a confident tone and Morgan continued to look uncertain. "It's just a lot of weapons. Makes me nervous. I grew up in England. I've not really had contact with guns." I explained, glancing over at the array of heavy weaponry that was being handed out and Morgan chuckled at me.
"We all carry pistols, Hawthorne. It's the FBI. Just remember, they are there for your safety as well as ours." He explained soothingly and I sighed, fidgeting awkwardly in the vest the moment that he had finished strapping me in it.
"Reid doesn't." I argued, struggling to manoeuvre my hair out of the straps. "And please, just call me Alice. I hate being addressed by my surname."
"You noticed that, huh? Well, maybe don't mention it around him. It's a bit of a soft spot for the kid." He teased, a mischievous grin spreading across his face and I chewed my lip nervously as I watched the assigned soldiers taking positions around the house to support us if needed.
"Alice, I'm gonna keep you safe in there. Alright? You just need to make sure that you stick to me. Now, come on. It's time to find this crazy bastard." He instructed firmly and I wasted no time in ensuring that I remained as close to him as possible as he moved to approach the house.
My heart pounded in my chest, only worsening with every step that I took and I couldn't help feeling almost completely defenceless. The home was painfully normal from the outside and it was hard to imagine that someone could be imprisoned within it, especially within a community that should be impenetrable for someone like Logan.
Morgan kicked the front door in with an overpowering amount of noise, launching everyone into a frenzy as Hotchner and Reid entered from the back of the house and I steeled myself as we rushed inside. I could barely hear myself think over the yelling of everyone around me and attempted to keep my focus in the moment, scanning my surroundings for anything that could lead us to Amanda. There was scarcely any furniture, or any signs at all that anyone was living here, and for a few moments, I worried that we had been led on a wild goose chase.
Without warning, a man charged toward Morgan causing me to jump backward in fright and after a brief scuffle, Morgan managed to subdue him by pressing him against the wall.
"Sergeant Logan. We'd heard that you moved out. Got a few questions about what you're doing on the base." Morgan growled, his anger at finding our suspect giving him a substantial boost in power and Agent Hotchner rounded the corner to cover Morgan with his pistol.
"Reid. Take Hawthorne and search the house. Amanda has to be here somewhere." Hotchner ordered, glancing toward me with an expression that revealed his faith in me to find something useful and Reid nodded obediently, before motioning for me to follow him.
We crept carefully through the other rooms on the ground floor, clearing out one before moving on and eventually made our way upstairs. I was painfully aware of the fact that neither of us were armed and prayed that there were no surprise accomplices waiting to jump out at us. Reid checked a room to my side, calling back to me that it was also clear and leaving only one door unsearched before me.
I turned the handle to find it locked and as Amanda's face flashed through my mind, I had a moment of madness. Just as Reid appeared behind me, I kicked the door with all of my might and instead of crashing down as the front door had when Morgan did it, I simply bounced off it with practically no impact. I lost my footing from the power of my rebound and fortunately, Reid was quick to catch me before I hit the ground, causing me to blush furiously.
"Alice! Are you alright?" He breathed, as he helped me back to my feet and I nodded, feeling my cheeks burning with humiliation.
"I'm fine. Mainly just wounded my pride. That's a lot harder than Morgan makes it look." I grumbled awkwardly and Reid couldn't suppress a grin as he regarded me. "Other than taking it off the hinges, which we definitely don't have time for, I'm shit outta ideas." I added in annoyance, glancing at the door as if it were the sole cause of my issues and Reid leaned over the bannister.
"Morgan, we've got a locked door up here that could use your persuasion skills." He called, followed almost immediately by Morgan's heavy footsteps rushing up the stairs and as he arrived on the landing, he glossed over us both with a judgemental smile.
We moved out of the way so that he could take a full charge up if needed, but he barged through the door as if it were made of paper. At a less pressured time, I would definitely have made some kind of sarcastic comment about being able to do that if I'd really wanted to, but for now my only concern was finding the girl.
From the state of the space inside, it was clear that this was where he had been holding Amanda, with items strewn around that had been used for the initial kidnap, but there was no sign of her any longer. Morgan turned back to face us with disbelief and we shared in his desperation.
"She's not here. Where the hell is she?"