3 weeks later...
"Hey, where's Serena?" Reid asked. It was already past 10 am. Morgan shrugged.
"Maybe she slept in." He replied, handing Prentiss a coffee.
"Hey guys, we have a case." JJ called from the landing. The team gathered around the table. Serena's seat remained empty.
"I'll call her." Reid offered, and stepped outside. Serena's phone went straight to voicemail. He tried again, but she didn't pick up. He was a little worried, but shook it off and went back to join the team.
Washington DC Metro Station
"Phew!" Serena ran down the stairs and boarded the metro just in time. The doors closed behind her, and she sat in a corner of the train car. She dug out her phone and saw two missed calls from Reid, and three missed calls from Hotch. Frick.
She had dashed out of her apartment at 6 am with Nala, only bothering to throw in a few changes of clothes. She hadn't calculated the team's intervention with her brief escape. Nala drooped her head onto Serena's leg. The dog wasn't very happy when Serena shook her awake.
She decided to not respond to Reid and Hotch. If she did, who knows, maybe Garcia could track her location. She looked out the window as the metro emerged from the dark tunnel. She leaned back and scratched Nala's head. Merissa's voice rang in her ears.
"You don't lie, do you, Serena? Because you're a good girl. You won't tell anyone, will you?"
On the jet
"Series of rapes and some murders." Morgan looked over the case files.
"Some of the girls are being killed, but some aren't." Rossi said thoughtfully.
"Garcia, have you found any connection between the ones who were killed, and the ones who weren't?" Hotch asked the screen. Garcia'a face popped up. Today, her theme was bright baby blue. She had fixed blue ribbons in her hair, and was wearing a blue necklace.
"No...not really." She responded.
"Well, anythin' helps, mama." Morgan shrugged.
"Well, this may be a long stretch, but all the ones who were killed, they were killed on their 18th birthday…" She said solemnly. The team was silent.
"And, most of them look the same." She reported, not being able to stand the sad silence. "Alena Zhang, Candace Brown, Eleanor Yama, and Julie Wan. All black hair, somewhat East Asian. The only oddball is Jennifer Matthews, who has red hair and green eyes."
"Jennifer was the first one killed. Maybe that was this unsub's trigger to start killing East Asian women." Prentiss offered.
"Are we sure this isn't a hate or racist crime?" Morgan asked.
"We can't be sure, Morgan. And, one more thing. Have any of you been able to reach Chen?" Hotch asked.
"No, but I'll try her when we land." JJ said.
"I'll track her phone." Garcia offered.
Hotch nodded, and the team resumed their talk of the case.
NYC
"Ky Ky, can we go watch a movie?" Alayla Jefferson and her girlfriend Kylee were walking down the streets of New York.
"No."
"Ky Ky, can we go eat ice cream?"
"No."
"KY KY!" Suddenly, Alayla's phone rang. The caller was unknown.
"Don't pick it up." Kylee advised. "For all you know, it could be a creepy stalker." But Alayla picked up anyway. Kylee groaned.
"Alayla?" Serena's voice rang.
"SERENA!" Alayla yelled. Kylee sighed.
"Hi, Alayla. I'm using a pay phone."
"What? Why?" Alayla asked.
"My uh, phone died." Serena said. "Listen, is Kylee with you?"
"Yup!"
"Okay. Don't tell her I said this. But, Merissa is after me." She paused. "Again."
Alayla gasped. "NO! She-she can't…you-you're an FBI agent now you can-"
"Yeah, yeah, I can take care of myself. Don't worry, Alayla, I'll be fine. I told you just in case. Merissa might come after you because she knows you're close to me. So, be on high alert. Stay with Kylee, okay?"
"O-okay." Alayla responded feebly. She said goodbye to her best friend and looked solemnly at the ground.
"Lemme guess." Kylee said, twirling with her pink hair. "Merissa the bitch is after her again."
"How are you so good?!" Alayla whined. "You should be a FBI profiler, like Serena!"
"Ew." Kylee responded.
Somewhere in Pittsburgh
Serena sighed, and scratched Nala behind the ears. She pulled on her corduroy jacket, and walked on. She could just ask Alastair to stay in one of the townhouses he owned, but then she'd be dragging him into this whole Merissa mess.
Come to think of it, he was already in it, since Merissa is his cousin… Serena thought. But, I don't really need to ask him. I'll pay him back next time. She shrugged, and pushed the key into the hole. She unclipped Nala's leash and the dog bounded happily into the old house. Serena plopped down on the brown leather couch and turned on the TV. Suddenly, she saw JJ's face on the screen.
"We urge that all girls between the ages 15 and 18 stay home or go out with someone else. This offender is smart, and they use a clever ruse to lure his victims in. The investigation is going steadily." She said to the cameras.
"Agent Jareau, how-"
"What do you-"
"How is the FBI-"
The reporters shouted out questions, bombarding JJ with words.
"One question at a time, please!" JJ yelled.
Serena bit her lip and walked to the kitchen. If anything, Merissa was back at work in New York with that Adam Gomez person. And, if Serena had to guess, they wouldn't catch her. Serena knew she had to help. She was part of the team, after all. What was she doing, hiding out in Pittsburgh? She reached her phone and dialed Reid's number.
NYPD station
"So, victimology is generally the same. I think it's a surrogate." Morgan remarked, looking at all the victim's photos. Suddenly, Reid's phone began to buzz.
"It's Serena!" He exclaimed happily. He picked up right away and put her on speaker.
"Chen, where the heck have you been?" Morgan asked.
"It's a long story. I dropped my phone in the sink, my car wouldn't start, then I lost my metrocard, I-"
"It's okay. Can you make it?" Reid asked.
"Yeah, uh, I don't think I should come over. I mean, you guys have under control right? I saw JJ on tv, I think I could help more back here."
"You know JJ has to lie to make those nasty reporters stop storming in the station." Rossi mused. Serena scoffed.
"Hey, Reid. Can you give the phone to Rossi?" Serena asked. There was awkward silence on the other end.
"Uh, sure?" Reid said, and handed it over to Rossi. Rossi gave a hesitant look, then stepped outside so the two could talk in private.
"What's up, kiddo?" He asked.
"Rossi, remember when you and Hotch met me when I was like 13?" Serena asked
"How could I forget?" Rossi replied. That case went cold, and Serena always thought it was her fault because she never told the two men what he had done to her.
"Well, I think...he's back." She said slowly.
Rossi sighed. "Kid, you're gonna have to tell me who this 'he' is, or I can't help you."
"I-I know! Well, his name's Adam. Adam Gomez. That's all I can tell you."
"Can? Come on, Serena, are you withholding information? You know that's against protocol."
"When have you ever been strict on protocol? I've given you a name. Now get Garcia to work her magic and catch him!" Serena yelled, and then she hung up.
Rossi looked at the black screen sadly. He and Serena had a special connection. He felt bad because he had failed to catch whoever hurt her back when she was a kid. He called her every year, to make sure she and her dad were okay. After learning that her father had been shot dead, he felt obligated to step in as a father figure for her.
Dammit Serena. It won't be long til Merissa finds you now. After she hears Gomez was caught, she's gonna hunt you down. What the hell were you thinking? She smacked her forehead and cuddled up against Nala. The dog sensed Serena's uneasiness and placed her head on her shoulder.
"I do not lie. I do not...lie…" Serena mumbled, and drifted off into sleep.