Having arrived at the police station in downtown New Castle, Hotch and his team got out of the two cars that had driven them on their hour drive from the Pittsburgh Airport. Snow was starting to come down lightly around, making the small downtown look almost like something out of a book, except for the graffiti on several of the buildings. Everybody rushed inside. The snow may have been light, but the wind was picking up, stinging everyone's faces.
Once inside, an officer walked over to them. She was an older woman, about forty. "Hello," she said, "You must be from the B.A.U. My name is Officer Voggler. I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have or help you in any way."
"We'd like to see the crime scene of the most recent victim." Gideon said.
"It's about ten minutes away." She said, "I and another officer can take in all in our squad cars."
So, once again, the team was out in the cold, climbing into two separate cars and heading out to the next crime scene. Reid climbed into a car with Morgan, Elle, and to his dislike, Gaby.
"Where exactly are the crime scenes at?" Gaby asked. She looked over at Reid, who was sitting next to her in the back seat. He looked away from her, out the window.
"Well, the first one was on the highway about a mile from the school." Officer Voggler said. The second was near a lake, about a quarter of a mile closer. This one is behind a gas station just down the road from the school. Her car never left the gas pump. The clerk inside was concerned when she didn't leave after paying for gas. He called it in. She was found about two hours later."
"Nobody saw her taken away or go off with anyone mysterious?" Elle asked.
"We interviewed the people on the scene when we arrived." Voggler replied, "If anyone had, they had left already."
"Maybe she went into the bathroom or something and the unsub was in there." Gaby said.
"Oh, of course, the bathroom." Reid said, "It's obvious, every single person who turns up missing at a gas station is kidnapped by someone waiting in the restroom. Every case is a textbook case."
"It was just a suggestion." Gaby answered bitterly.
"Give her a break, Reid, this is her first day." Morgan said. "You remember your first case, right?"
Reid didn't answer. He turned and continued to look out the window. He didn't know why he was treating Gaby like this. She had seemed alright at first, but now she just seemed to be in his way. He couldn't help but dislike Gaby Fairchild, and he didn't mind showing her, either.
"Didn't Hotch mention something about the bodies appearing to have been dumped?" Elle asked.
"Yeah," Morgan said, "They were suspected to have been raped and killed somewhere else."
"Probably all in the same place." Elle replied.
"Other than the victims working together and having the same COD, did they have any other similarities?"
"Nothing that was reported to the police." Voggler said, turning into the parking lot of the gas station.
"We'll have to interview any body who worked close with them." Reid said.
"Students would be our best bet." Gaby replied, "After all, they spend a scheduled amount of time daily with the victim."
"If you had given me a moment, I would have mentioned that myself." Reid snapped.
"Sorry, I didn't know." Gaby said with a self-satisfied smile. "I wasn't sure if you would be able to think of that on your own. I'm surprised you pieced the first part of that together."
Reid looked at Gaby, furious. She smiled at him in an innocent way. Morgan snorted, trying to stifle his laughter.
"This is going to be a long case." Elle said.
Reid, Gaby, Morgan, Elle, and officer Voggler climbed out of the squad car as the second one pulled in. Gidieon, Hotch, and J.J. got out with the other officer. They walked over to the rest of the team.
"If you'll follow me, I'll lead you over to the crime scene." Voggler said, leading them behind the gas station.
Police tape enclosing the area, the crime scene sat, minus the body. A few crime scene investigators were picking up clues and taking a few pictures of the area. Gidieon bent down to exam a large pile of mud, which looked as if someone had stepped in and sank a bit in the mud.
"No one was seen around the area?" Hotch asked.
There was a crowd of high school seniors around the body when we found her. They didn't report it or anything. They said they were going to, just after making sure she was a real dead body."
"That's the best story they could come up with?" Morgan asked.
"What are you going to do? They're high school kids." The other officer said.
"Anything specific?" J.J. asked, standing over Gidieon.
"Look at this print." Gidieon said, "It's too perfect." He stood up and looked around. "Everything about this scene is perfect. Perfectly laid out, perfectly set. I'd bet even the body was perfectly lain."
"What does that mean?" Gaby asked.
"It means that the unsub specifically wanted the scene to look like this. The average person would have staged the scene to cover his tracks to frame someone. But this being a serial killer, it could mean he wants his victims to be in this spot and everything around the victim exactly the way he pictured and planned it. The boot print in the mud, the water around where the body lays, the position the body lays in, it all means something the unsub wants to tell the victim."
"Any person with an IQ above 70 would have already known that." Reid said.
"Oh, I understood. I wanted him to explain so you could understand." Gaby answered.
Gaby turned and followed Hotch and Elle, who were walking around the gas station, out of sight. Morgan walked over to Gidieon.
"So you have a daughter?" Morgan asked.
Gidieon didn't look from the crime scene. "We have a serial killer on the lose, ready to strike its next victim, and that's what you're concerned about?"
"Have you talked to her yet?" Morgan asked.
"I'll talk to her later." Gidieon replied.
"You knew her mom, right. I mean, it sounded like you two had a thing together."
"Could we not be so concerned about this now?" Reid asked.
"Why are you so on edge today?" J.J. asked.
"I'm not on edge. I'd just like everyone to focus on the case, please!" Reid walked around the gas station.
Morgan and J.J. followed Reid around the gas station, leaving Gidieon alone with the crime scene. Hotch, Elle, and Gaby were interviewing the clerk.
"Look, it's like I told the cops." The clerk said, "I'm covering a shift for a friend, so I've been here since 7 p.m. She stopped by about 9:30, bought gas, a cappuccino, and a pack of gum, and left the store. It was around 7 a.m. when it started to get light and I noticed her car was still out there. That's when I called the cops."
"Did you see her get into her car?" Elle asked.
"It was dark, lady." The clerk said, "Not to mention we had a pretty bad storm last night. The snow was pretty thick. I'm surprised there wasn't a delay up the school. Mind you, the school doesn't often delay."
"Who else was in the store that night?" Hotch asked.
"Let's see," the clerk thought for a moment, "The vet that works down the road, musical rehearsal had let out about nine, so there were a few kids who stopped by afterward. I assume that's why the teacher was in there. Ms. Winters helps plays piano for the show. There was also a janitor from the church a few miles down the high way. Works the night shift. Pretty shady character. He might be your guy. He also works at the school in the mornings until noon."
"Thank you; we'll contact you if we have anymore questions." Elle said.
The clerk walked back into the station. The team, minus Gidieon, turned to talk to one another.
"We'll head up to the school and interview any kids who have close contact with the teacher." Hotch said.
"Especially those musical kids." J.J. replied.
"Right. Elle and I will talk with the principal, see if he knows anything. As soon as Gidieon gets back, Morgan, I want you two and J.J. to talk with that janitor. He's still has a few more hours on his shift. Reid, you and Gaby find out who has class with the teacher and who is also in the musical. Pull them out of whatever class they're in and talk to them."
"Do I have to work with her?" Reid asked. "I mean, she isn't even properly trained!"
"It's not exactly better roses for me either, sweetie!" Gaby snapped, glaring at him.
Morgan leaned to whisper in Elle's ear. "Do you have a knife?" he asked.
"What for?" J.J. asked.
"To cut the tension between those two." He said. Elle snorted and covered her mouth with her hand.