p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Chapter 18/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Hotch assigned Connors to Reid to meet with the local bureau to see why they were struggling with collecting information. Reid apparently had done research and discovered that the killings were serial. Connors drove as Reid thumbed through news papers. "How did you make the connection between these kills?" She asked. "I noticed a similar MO in news reports in local papers." "Why were you reading local papers in a town miles away?" "Because I like to." He quipped. She scrunched the corner of her lip at his snappy retort. How could anyone put up with this guy? She got it, he was smart. He made that abundantly clear. But his personality... ugh. She shrugged it off. If she wanted to stay on this team, she had to deal with it./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"They pulled up to the bureau and got out of the car. She smiled and the sunny day and the gentle breeze skim her cheeks. Then the pictures of the victims flashed behind her eyes. How could it be such a beautiful day when something so horrible had happened. But then again, she remembered how lovely the night had been the last time she has stared horror in the face. As the smell of smoke began to fill her nostrils she shook off the memory and pressed forward, right behind Doctor Reid./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Spencer shook hands with Agent Stern, Connors following tight behind. Connors introduced herself and then him. She began to ask a question but he cut her off, asking about the information on the Pine reservation. As Stern brought them into the drab conference room he looked at the nearly blank board. He looked around the room for other scraps of evidence, perhaps a box of files, but nothing. "Is this it?" He asked. "No offense or are you like incredibly busy in rapid city South Dakota? because last time I checked you guys have the fifth lowest crime rate in the country? I just, I feel like the families deserve more."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Connors shot him a surprised side eye, but kept quiet in front of the other agent, not wanting a snappy retort on her as well. Spencer caught her glance but ignored it. He was too irritated with the lack of concern this agency obviously showed. Agent Stern quipped back about the lack of cooperation from the natives on the settlement. Connors looked to Reid to say something more or apologize, but after a beat, watching the doctor hold his irritated stare. "We understand. We appreciate your situation." Connors finally said. She felt the irritation radiating off of him but she didn't cower. She wasn't going to let him push her around. She puffed up her chest and continued. "Is the dump site close to any highways or roads?" Stern nods and begins to go into the details of what she knows so far. Spencer listens intently until he catches a glance at Connors. He sees her diligently listening to everything she has to say, jotting down the occasional note on her little notepad. It was leather bound and she wrote with a glossy black pen. She always looked so put together. He didn't know why that irritated him so much./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Hotch assigned Connors to Reid to meet with the local bureau to see why they were struggling with collecting information. Reid apparently had done research and discovered that the killings were serial. Connors drove as Reid thumbed through news papers. "How did you make the connection between these kills?" She asked. "I noticed a similar MO in news reports in local papers." "Why were you reading local papers in a town miles away?" "Because I like to." He quipped. She scrunched the corner of her lip at his snappy retort. How could anyone put up with this guy? She got it, he was smart. He made that abundantly clear. But his personality... ugh. She shrugged it off. If she wanted to stay on this team, she had to deal with it./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"They pulled up to the bureau and got out of the car. She smiled and the sunny day and the gentle breeze skim her cheeks. Then the pictures of the victims flashed behind her eyes. How could it be such a beautiful day when something so horrible had happened. But then again, she remembered how lovely the night had been the last time she has stared horror in the face. As the smell of smoke began to fill her nostrils she shook off the memory and pressed forward, right behind Doctor Reid./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Spencer shook hands with Agent Stern, Connors following tight behind. Connors introduced herself and then him. She began to ask a question but he cut her off, asking about the information on the Pine reservation. As Stern brought them into the drab conference room he looked at the nearly blank board. He looked around the room for other scraps of evidence, perhaps a box of files, but nothing. "Is this it?" He asked. "No offense or are you like incredibly busy in rapid city South Dakota? because last time I checked you guys have the fifth lowest crime rate in the country? I just, I feel like the families deserve more."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1"Connors shot him a surprised side eye, but kept quiet in front of the other agent, not wanting a snappy retort on her as well. Spencer caught her glance but ignored it. He was too irritated with the lack of concern this agency obviously showed. Agent Stern quipped back about the lack of cooperation from the natives on the settlement. Connors looked to Reid to say something more or apologize, but after a beat, watching the doctor hold his irritated stare. "We understand. We appreciate your situation." Connors finally said. She felt the irritation radiating off of him but she didn't cower. She wasn't going to let him push her around. She puffed up her chest and continued. "Is the dump site close to any highways or roads?" Stern nods and begins to go into the details of what she knows so far. Spencer listens intently until he catches a glance at Connors. He sees her diligently listening to everything she has to say, jotting down the occasional note on her little notepad. It was leather bound and she wrote with a glossy black pen. She always looked so put together. He didn't know why that irritated him so much./span/p
