A/N: Just so you know, I could not actually find a copy of the FBI Handbook, so I'm taking 1x05: Broken Mirror on faith.
CHAPTER NINE: Evanescence
"When you go through tragedy, you can either let that destroy you and you become bitter and never let it go, or you can let it make you stronger and let it make you grow. And that's what I did. My lyrics are coming from a place that I want people to relate to and feel that they're not alone" – Amy Lee, Evanescence"
One week later, and Jennifer Jareau could honestly say that her life had managed to somehow survive the events of Boston. She was entwined in the arms of her boyfriend, his right hand cupping her right breast as he slept; his breath on the back of her neck, his morning arousal poking into her core.
"Jennifer," he whispered, his fingers rubbing her nipple, erect in his hand. She moaned, arching back into his arousal, wishing not for the first time that there were no barriers between them. When the alarm went off a few minutes later, signaling their need to awaken and get ready for their first day back to work, she groaned in a different kind of frustration.
"JJ," he said a few minutes later. Jennifer, he'd told her, is reserved for just them. JJ is who she has to be when they're readying for work. She reached back, turning her neck to meet his lips with hers.
"JJ," he said again, this time hollow of breath. "You're radiant."
She said nothing, just smiled; taking in good faith what had become a morning ritual, before walking to her ready bag; clothes cleaned and packed the night before. She looked at Spence's chest of drawer, where she'd placed a Silver Eagle that her father had given her so long ago.
"I don't want to go to work today," Spence groaned. She smiled; wondering if that was a side effect of having a social life, or laziness from not having to work for so long.
"I don't either," she surprised herself by admitting as such. "But, someone has to catch the UNSUB's."
He nodded, resigned, and slipped out of bed. She moved to watch him, her eyes on his semi-nude form. She could honestly say she knew the contours of his body better than anyone. He'd confided in her, that he'd never seen a woman's nude form before her, and that until he'd met her, he'd never even thought of losing his virginity.
And, she'd been as honest, telling him that she'd lost her virginity in high school, a meaningless bit of teenage rebellion that she'd regretted each day since, but that she had never ached for someone's touch as much as she had his. His analytical mind had accepted that fact, something she was hopeful for, and told her that he'd be honored if she were the first woman to see him. She had nodded dumbly, walked forward, and slowly lowered his jeans; locking her gaze with his and looking for the slightest hesitancy, before sweeping said gaze over his nude form. Since that night, he'd always slept in a pair of boxers, and nothing else, his hands entwined with hers.
She watched him gather his clothes, and walk to the bathroom. He returned twenty minutes later, his clothes thrown haphazardly on, and a pair of mismatched socks adorning his feet. She smiled, and walked past him.
She showered for thirty minutes, enjoying the fact that his water was even hotter than hers. It was still amazing that they were together, even more so that she had nearly invaded his home, and he hers, and neither were bothered by that notion.
She returned to find that Spence had already chosen a pair of her clothes from the closet, her yellow, button-up shirt and black skirt. She'd noticed over the years that he'd eyed the clothes she wore, and only recently learned that he had mentally recorded the image she projected in each one. He'd also noticed, ironically enough, that she tended to wear this particular outfit at least once a month, always on a Monday, and usually the day after a long night, or after a vacation, whichever.
He then jokingly told her that the outfit projected her hopes for the week, and her disposition towards life at that particular moment, sunny and hopeful for the days to come.
She'd shaken her head, laughing as she thanked him, and dressed. She was surprised to learn that dressing in front of him was as erotic as undressing.
They were out the door fifteen minutes later, taking their separate cars incase they needed to leave overnight for a case, since there wasn't any reason to leave one car or the other exposed to the elements. He'd nodded in agreement.
They'd arrived together, and she'd smiled, grabbing his hand. It had taken him quoting, verbatim the page number, and entire paragraph from the code of conduct last night before she'd agreed to even this much intimacy.
He had, enjoying the look on her face as he told her to turn to page 1753. "Paragraph 191: Fraternization, Subsection E, Active Field Agents. While social interaction between two co-workers is frowned upon, it is not the policy of the Federal Bureau of investigations to prohibit active field (Supervisory Special) agents from engaging in relationships. In the event two members of the same team begin such a relationship, however, it is their responsibility to inform their direct superior of the status of said new relationship."
She had sighed. After years of hearing about the Rossi incident, she'd been hesitant to inform their teammates about their new relationship, more afraid of perceived repercussions than of their rejection too her and Spence's happiness.
They took the elevator too the fifteenth floor, and upon the doors opening noticed that the rest of their fractured team, minus Jason Gideon, were converged in the round table room. She kissed Spence lightly before they separated upon crossing the threshold.
They walked in tandem too the conference that hadn't yet started. Penelope Garcia was sitting in front of Aaron Hotchner, who was smiling lightly as he fingered his wedding ring. Derek Morgan was sitting at the table, looking at Garcia, a soft smile on his face. They entered silently, waving to Derek, who had looked up upon their entering, his hand waving. Garcia turned almost immediately, a smile erupting on her face as she stood up and made her way over and wrapping them in smothering hugs.
"I'm glad you made it," Hotch said as they entered, "I was beginning to think we were the only ones returning. You're not here to resign?" He asked suddenly afraid.
"No," she said, "I'm with you, Hotch. The BAU is my family. That said, we do have something to tell you."
"What can I do for you, JJ?"
"We need to inform you of a change within the teams dynamic," she said. He looked at her and Spence and smiled, "You've finally gotten together?"
She nodded. Hotch smiled, "We were wondering when you would notice, JJ. I'm sure Reid has already told you that there's nothing the bureau can do about your relationship?"
She nodded again. He said, "Personally, I'm happy for you. As your boss, however, I need to warn you not to let your emotions cloud your judgment, or negatively affect the team."
She thanked him, and said, "We were planning to announce it later, but with everyone already here, I thought that we should go ahead and take the opportunity."
Hotch smiled, "Good, I'm happy for the both of you, JJ. I'll need to speak with you both separately later, but I approve."
She nodded and thanked him.
"And just so we're clear, I'm staying too," her boyfriend of two weeks said.
"Good," the Unit Chief said relief on his face. "Please take a seat."
They did, taking to seats that were close together. His hand came to hers under the table, and she wrapped her fingers around his. Spence's thumb rubbed the outside of her hand, as they listened to Hotch begin what he wanted to say.
"It's been three weeks since we last stood in this room, mourning the loss of our colleagues and family. I said then that I wouldn't blame any of you for leaving, and I meant it, but I am happy that you've all decided to return. I've been asked to give each of you psychological evaluations, to see how you're coping with the effects of what happened in Boston, so I'll be scheduling time with each of you over the next week.
But, as you know, with having lost so many of our colleagues, it is going to be difficult to reorganize the team. So, JJ," he said turning to her, "As well as our media liaison, I would like for you to take on the extra duties of press-coordinator."
She felt tears come to her eyes, the thought of taking over the job of one of her sisters all-consuming. "As well as contacting the local media franchises to set up press conferences, I would like for you to give them. I know that you were supposed to have done so anyway, but with Jill having experience, Jason and I felt that she would be best for the job. If you don't think you can, I will understand."
"I can do it," she said immediately. "Jill often gave me advice on how to do the job for…" she paused, "for the day she finally 'got sick of this place and left'. She said that a degree was good, but that experience counted for more, and she was right."
Hotch nodded and turned to Derek. "We also need a new Tactics and Countermeasures trainer for the academy, which is our responsibility to provide, as well as part of our duties. As you know, Andrew and Mark shared these duties. Would you be willing to take over?"
Derek didn't hesitate, nodding. Then their unit chief turned to Spence. "One of the best things about Abraham's areas of expertise was that he could understand the writing styles of our UNSUB's. Reid, as well as your expertise on… well everything, you have the best chance of learning Graphology. Are you willing?"
Spence nodded. He smiled, "I'll be taking over Jason's duties, as I've said. Garcia," he said turning to the exuberant woman, "Monica and Sarah's duties actually lay in your area of expertise. Sarah was our go to for fingerprint analysis, which is mostly computerized, and Monica was our in-field Computer technician. I know that you're against flying, but is there a way you would be able to help us in the field?"
She nodded, "Yeah, I was already thinking about it, actually."
He nodded again. "Alright; hopefully it won't be long until we can start to fill the positions that our friends left, but until then there are still UNSUB's to catch, that said… we have a case. The city of Warwick, Rhode Island has a serial rapist. In the last two weeks the UNSUB has kidnapped and raped three women; Juliet Holmes, Michelle Garson, and Abigail Suede. So far, no one has died, however the violence the UNSUB unleashes on the victim has increased. In the assault against Juliet Holmes, the UNSUB used a condom. In the second, he threw Michelle Garson into a tub full of water and forced her to bathe while he watched. In the most recent assault, he doused Abigail Suede in undiluted bleach. She has chemical burns on fourteen percent of her body. Each forensic countermeasure has ensured that any genetic material the UNSUB left behind was useless to investigators."
She winced, looking at the pictures in the case file in front of her. They looked so much like Jill, red-haired, green-eyed with lithe bodies that they could have passed for her twins. Apparently, she wasn't the only one to notice.
"Damn," Morgan said as he looked at them. Spence, she noticed, hadn't said anything.
"He obviously has a type," her boyfriend said, his voice unemotional. Before, she'd have been angry at his nonchalance, but now that she could read his emotions better, she knew he was trying to keep the case on the three victims, and not a resemblance said victims had to their fallen teammate.
Hotch looked sad but relieved, and even Derek looked a bit ashamed at his reaction.
"He's a sadist," Derek said a second later, "during the first attack; rape was enough to get his release. During the second, he needed to add the humiliation in to get ultimate power. With this third attack, the act itself isn't enough, now he needs the element of inflicting pain to gain satisfaction. He's evolving rapidly, and it isn't going to be long until he's killed, because the rape isn't enough anymore. As a matter of fact, I wouldn't be surprised if his next victim ends up dead, which means…"
Hotch nodded. "This means wheels up in twenty. I hope you all remembered to bring your ready bags."
They nodded, and everyone stood to left down to their cars and grabbed the ready bags. They walked to the van, where Morgan was already sitting in the driver's seat. She climbed into the back, and watched as Spence climbed in, sitting beside her.
Hotch followed a few minutes later, climbing into the passenger seat.
"So, what else do we know about the UNSUB," Hotch asked as they pulled out of the underground lot.
"He's escalating rapidly," Spence said after a minute perusing the file. "Juliet Holmes was attacked in her home, at night. She's single, and new to the area, so no one thought twice when she didn't show up to work the next morning. She reported the rape almost immediately after recovering consciousness the next morning, and reported that the UNSUB spent hours with her.
With Michelle Garson, married one year to a Navy Captain, he didn't spend close to the same amount of time. She reported that he kept asking her, 'if it was good for her". Then he forced her to clean up after, and he also forced her to wash the bed sheets in bleach water. This shows that he's meticulous."
"With Abigail Suede, married with a newborn child," Morgan said, "There's none of that. He didn't even bother with any other part of his ritual. He just threw bleach on her, effective in removing all traces of DNA from him, but also a lot more impersonal. There wasn't any interaction between his initial attack, and when he left. That's rapid de-evolution. This guy's all over the map."
"Age wise," Spence said, "the three victims are all within a year of each other, and Abigail Suede is the oldest, at thirty. Juliet Holmes is the youngest at twenty-nine, and Michelle Garson is just two days shy of turning thirty. That means the UNSUB is within five years, since we know rapists tend to stay close to their own age. He's most likely Caucasian since most rapists don't tend to cross the color barrier."
"So we're looking for a white male, twenty-four to thirty-four." Hotch said, filling in the first part of their profile. They arrived at the plane, about then. JJ closed her phone, and said, "We'll be met at the local airport by the sheriff and mayor. The mayor wants to be kept in the loop on the case, since the women attacked are well-standing members of the community."
"No problem, JJ," their boss said.
"He'll have a prior conviction," Derek said, "Possibly started out peeking into windows at an early age."
"How can you be sure," JJ asked. Hotch smiled, nodding for Morgan to continue. Derek said, "We know from past experience that most rapists don't start out this violently. There are always signs of escalation."
"This is a good starting point," Hotch said, his eyes hard as the plane taxied down the runway. "JJ," the unit chief turned to her, his eyes hard, "as soon as we land, get started on planning a press conference. We need to warn the women of Kent County."
She nodded.
"So, victimology," Hotch then said.
"There isn't a lot about them, other than the fact that they're all physically the same type. Juliet Holmes is single, and she just started a medical internship at Kent Hospital, after graduating Egregia cum Laude after attaining her MD for both Emergency Room and Operating Room practices.
Abigail Suede recently had a child with her husband, a firefighter, though her most recent job was that of a waitress at a local restaurant.
Michelle Garson was recently let go from the factory she worked at for four years, after a newer employee accused her of unsafe working conditions. The charges were proven false after an internal investigation; however, Michelle had also been verbally abused by her former coworkers after the incident, a fire starting near her working area. She was recently awarded a large settlement for emotional pain and suffering, as well as being fired without cause." Spence said surprised.
"What kind of fire?" Hotch asked. Spence looked at the report and said, "the report indicates that the janitor set undiluted bleach near her area. She was the operator of an Oxy Fuel Acetylene torch, which means she was a welder. The janitor claims that the bleach was not even used the night before, so there should have been no reason for the bleach to have been left out. An analysis of the floor indicates that to be true."
"Was anyone hurt in the chemical fire?"
"Just the new employee, Terra Parsons, who was the employee to levy charges against Michelle Garson," Derek said looking at his report. "She was also hurt in the chemical fire, and awarded a settlement from the company in question."
Hotch nodded.
"What worries me," Spence said, "is that the bleach would have released toxic fumes along with the fire, yet no one has complained of lung damage, or shown up as being poisoned."
The team shared a look, and Hotch said, "That's irrelevant at the moment, Reid. We need to focus on finding the UNSUB. Bring it up after we catch this guy, okay?"
Spence nodded. JJ could see his eyes narrow, calculating.
"Why didn't they smell the bleach before hand," JJ asked.
"Because, they just assumed the janitor had cleaned the floors the night before, apparently the day after bleaching the floors, the work area still has the bleach odor," Derek said.
The plan landed a few minutes later, and as the team debarked, Hotch walked up too two men, one in an officer's uniform the other wearing a custom-made three-piece suit, and said, "Mayor Reynolds, Sheriff Adams, I'm Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner, this is SSA Jareau, our media liaison. These are Agents Morgan and Doctor Reid with the FBI."
"Thank you for coming," Mayor Reynolds said, "We've had a difficult time keeping the public from panicking."
JJ said, "That's why I'm here. Hotch, I'll get started on a press conference to let the locals know we're here." The Unit Chief nodded.
"Anyways," the Mayor said a bit upset about being cut off, "Abigail Suede is the wife of the Chief of the Fire Department, so as you can imagine, this is pretty big news."
"Yes, and it's a lot worse," Sheriff Adams said, "I was just notified before you arrived, another woman was assaulted. She's dead."
"Why didn't I hear about this," Mayor Reynolds asked, his eyes narrowing. Sheriff Adams said, "Because, her body was located only ten minutes ago, Mr. Mayor. It was Terra Parsons," he said. The Mayor paled. The team winced.
"Sheriff, we're going to need access to a work area, and our technical analyst should be in contact with you from Quantico."
"We've got an area set up at the station," he said, "I need to go out to deliver some bad news, if someone would like to join me. The crime scene units are on location at the scene, which is the old City Hall on South Wales Blvd. Mayor Reynolds, I'll contact you with an update later," the Sheriff said. The Mayor, still pale, nodded, "That's fine. I'm going to call Argyle, to let him know so he can be ready if we need to call him in, Doug."
"Derek," Hotch said, "You go with the Sheriff to interview Ms. Parson's family. Reid, I'll need you to pull all the information you can from the Fire Chief regarding the chemical fire, and see if there's anything strange you can make out about it. Then, head to the sight of the latest assault, and see if anything sticks out at you."
Reid nodded, as Hotch finished, "After that, meet us at the police station. JJ, are you prepared to issue a statement?"
"Just about," she said, "I'm just waiting for word back from local affiliates, then I'll get everything pulled together."
Hotch nodded.
With Derek-
"Argyle?" Derek asked the Sheriff a few seconds after getting into the car. The Sheriff said, "The Mayor's son, he's twenty-three, and a part-time deputy. He's a good kid, and the Mayor dotes on him."
Derek nodded. "So, where exactly did Terra Parsons live?"
"She lived about a ten miles out; her parents were long-time city council members."
Derek nodded.
"She was hurt in the chemical fire," Derek asked.
"Yeah, but after it was determined that Michelle Garson was innocent, Terra called her and apologized for what happened between them. Michelle told her that her reaction was understandable, since she got burned pretty badly, and that she didn't hold any resentment towards Ms. Parsons."
"How bad were her injuries," Derek asked as they pulled into a driveway.
"She has... Had scars on fourteen percent of her body, as well as scarring along the insides of her thighs and damage to her face where the bleach melted part of her skin. The chemical fire burned pretty rapidly."
Derek nodded again, as the Sheriff put his car in park and stepped out, into cold air. Sheriff Adams sighed, "I hate this part of the job."
"You and every other person in our line of work," Derek said agreeing as they approached the door. Derek pulled his badge almost immediately seeing the man eyeing them with anxiousness.
"Sheriff Adams," the man about to receive the worst news a parent could greeted them cordially.
"Daniel," the sheriff said, "This is FBI Special Agent Derek Morgan, may we come in?"
"What's this about?"
"Sir," Derek said, "I really think you should be sitting down for what we need to say."
Daniel nodded, walking inside and sitting beside his wife, who Sheriff Adams greeted as "Samantha", eyeing them nervously.
"Dan," Sheriff Adams said, "Sam, I'm so sorry, Terra's body was found this morning. She's been murdered."
Derek winced as the cordial attitude in their hosts changed almost immediately to hostile.
"What the hell happened?" Daniel said, "Was it that bitch Michelle?"
"Dan," the Sheriff said, "It was not Michelle Garson."
"How can you know that," Samantha Parsons said, anger lining her voice.
"Terra was killed by a man," the Sheriff said. Their faces paled.
"The r-r-rapist," Dan asked, "Was he… did…"
"There isn't any evidence of sexual assault," the Sheriff said, not bothering to mention that they hadn't yet performed an autopsy.
"What's the FBI's interest in this case," Daniel said turning his burning gaze to Derek. He sighed, "We were already on our way this morning when news about your daughter reached Local Law Enforcement. We were hoping to prevent another assault, and I can only apologize for what's happened."
"They weren't even here yet," Doug Adams told the parents before him.
"Mr. and Mrs. Parsons, I know this is a really bad time, but I was hoping I could ask you a few questions."
"Why," Samantha asked.
"Because, these questions will help us narrow in on the bastard that did this to your family," Derek said honestly.
The devastated couple before him nodded.
"Was your daughter involved with anyone," Derek asked.
"Dating?" Samantha asked, "No. At least not that we know. Ever since the fire at the plant, she's been so secluded. Her face was almost completely burned off between the acetylene and the bleach. She was awarded half of a large settlement from the explosion; the other half went to the bitch that started the fire."
"Michelle Garson was cleared of any wrongdoing," Sheriff Adams said. "Terra also told me that she contacted Michelle, and apologized for what happened between them. Terra and she mended their friendship," he explained. The couple was stunned, their faces dropping; the weight of having to maintain such hatred leaving them.
"You're sure?"
"Michelle and Terra were friends?" Derek asked.
"Since childhood," Samantha nodded, tears flowing down her face as she pointed out a picture on the mantle.
"Why wasn't this in your report, Sheriff," Derek asked?
"Is it relevant?" Doug asked.
Derek nodded, "It shows a connection between the two of them that we didn't know about before. Mr. and Mrs. Parsons, do you know the name of the Doctor that treated your daughter?"
Samantha nodded and walked out of the room. She came back a few minutes later with a letter, "It's the close-out letter Terra received from Kent Hospital. That would be Doctor Juliet Holmes."
Derek's eyes narrowed, and he thanked them, apologizing again for their loss. "We will catch the man that did this," Derek assured them.
"How can you know that," Daniel Parsons asked. Derek said, "Because, catching the bad guys is what we do."
As they walked out of the building, Derek pulled out his phone.
"Hotch," he said a second after the phone picked up, "Juliet Holmes was the Doctor that treated Terra Parsons after the chemical fire disfigured her. I think that if we check, she'll have also treated Michelle Garson."
Derek listened to the man telling him what Pretty boy had figured out, before asking, "What are the chances that all of the victims were close to this chemical fire, even indirectly? Doctor Holmes treated both Michelle Garson and Terra Parsons, and Abigail Suede's husband investigated how the fire was set."
Derek turned to the sheriff and repeated the question what Hotch just asked him, "How old is Fire Chief Suede?"
"Mike is thirty-four," he told them.
Hotch hung up, a few seconds after the sheriff told them. Ten minutes later, they pulled into the station, where the team was already converged.
With Reid
Spencer nodded as he got his travelling orders, and after Hotch asked his girlfriend a question, shared with her a quick kiss, and walked to a standard issue SUV that was waiting for him. Once he'd started the engine, he pulled out and drove too the Fire Department.
He pulled his badge, getting instant access from the firefighters, who had only seconds before been prepared to kick him out of here. Upon knocking on the door too the Fire Chief's office, he was called to come in.
"Fire Chief Suede, I'm Special Agent Doctor Spencer Reid with the FBI. My team is in town looking into the serial rapist that's been attacking local women," he said, noticing the Chief gained a hard look about him. "I know this is a sensitive subject, and I apologize, however, I do need to ask you a few questions."
He nodded. "What can I do for you, Doctor Reid?"
"We understand that the Fire Department investigated the chemical fire that hurt Terra Parsons and Michelle Garson. What can you tell me about it?"
"What does the fire have to do with this?" Fire Chief Suede asked.
Spencer sighed, "Terra Parsons was found murdered this morning. So far, the fire is the only common denominator between four of the… that we can find."
The chief nodded, "It was just a standard fire; the fire from the acetylene torch hit the bleach, superheated it causing it to explode."
"Acetylene Torches burn at 6000 degrees Fahrenheit, or 3,315.55 repeating Celsius," Spence nodded. "And bleach is classified as both explosive/reactive and toxic according to government reports. Do you have a copy of the department's report, so that I can look it over?"
"Are you qualified?" the Fire Chief asked. Spence nodded, "I have PhD's in Chemistry and Engineering, which gives relevancy to the situation at hand, as well as another in Mathematics."
The Chief went to the filing cabinet and pulled out a folder.
"It says here that you were the investigator on this case?" Spence said a second later, his eyes narrowed slightly.
"I only became the fire chief two weeks ago," Chief Suede said, "It was a sudden promotion, Chief Sanchez wasn't due to retire for another year, but he announced a couple of days after the fire that he was retiring early."
Spencer nodded, his hand flowing over the words. He smiled; JJ had mentioned that he looked like a scanner when he did this.
"Excuse me Doctor Reid, can you actually read that fast?"
"Yes," he answered, "Thank you, Chief; might I take a copy of the report, please?"
"Keep that one, Doctor," he said, "Just find the bastard that's doing this!"
"Yes sir, and please accept my condolences for what has happened to your wife."
The man nodded. Spencer stood and shook his hand. Then, he turned and walked out.
He approached his SUV, and without waiting, pulled out of the lot in front of the fire department and drove for a few minutes, before pulling out his phone and dialing Hotch's number. He didn't get an answer, so he dialed JJ.
"Hey JJ," he said, "How's everything going on your end?" He listened to her answer, and smiled.
"I did try calling Hotch first," he replied hurriedly, blushing, "but he didn't answer.
He grinned at her response before passing on what he knew.
"Can you let Hotch know that Chief Suede has only been on the job for two weeks, and that the old Chief, Sanchez, was forced out for an unknown reason? Thanks," he said listening to her response. "Thank you. Also, I'm heading to the crime scene now, JJ. I'll be back at the station in about thirty minutes."
"I will," Spence promised, "I'll call you later."
He sighed as he pulled into the old City Hall, which had been renovated into apartment buildings when City Hall was moved across town to a newer building. He parked alongside a white van with the letters "CSU" painted on in green letters. A police officer was looking at him and yelling that he needed to back up. Spence approached with his badge out, and showed it to the officer, who lifted the yellow tape.
"EXCUSE ME," a voice yelled, "Agent!"
Spence turned. A reporter stood there, a microphone in her hand. She was displaying her chest forward, smiling seductively at him. Spence ignored her poor attempts at seduction and said, "The FBI has no comment at this moment. We cannot discuss the details of an ongoing investigation."
"What about the press conference that has been called?" the woman challenged. Spencer looked at her, and said, "As I said, the FBI has no comment at this time," he stressed. "Please excuse me."
The woman pouted for a moment, before opening her mouth again. Spencer sighed and said, "You need to keep the area cleared Officer," he looked at the tag, "Greene."
He nodded, and Spencer turned to the building, and almost lost his lunch. It wasn't his first horrifying crime scene, but it was a bad one. Blood was everywhere, arterial spray covering the walls, as well as a pool of blood. There was an outline where Terra Parson's body had once laid.
"Can I help you," a CSI asked. Spence turned to him and said, "Special Agent Doctor Spencer Reid, FBI. I just need to look at the crime scene."
"We're just about to clear it, Doctor," the CSI asked, "I'm CSI Foley."
"Thank you," Spence said looking at the scene. "Do you have any pictures of the victim; my team is going to need to see how she died and what about her, other than her death, differs from the previous victims."
CSI Foley handed him a digital camera and sadly said, "I took the pictures myself, Doctor Reid. As you can see, her throat was slashed, cutting both internal and external carotid arteries."
"Any signs that she was sexually assaulted," Spence asked softly. CSI Foley shook his head, "Not in the strictest definition."
"Please explain," Spencer asked. CSI Foley looked at him and said, "There are signs of sexual activity, however, there are no defensive marks on the victim. There was no skin underneath her nails, and there were no forensic countermeasures taken, except for evidence of a condom. We also found a fingerprint on her arms."
"Have you run the print yet," Spence asked. CSI Foley shook his head. Spence nodded and turned to the room. "Were there any signs of forced entry?"
"No," another CSI said walking too them.
"No," agreed CSI Foley, "Doctor Barkley, this is Agent Doctor Spencer Reid, FBI. Doctor Barkley is our Medical Examiner."
Spencer looked at the room and said, "Thank you. Doctor Barkley can you tell me cause of death?"
"What it seems," the man said, "severing the carotid artery caused exsanguination. The victim probably bled out within minutes."
"Two point three," Spencer said nodding. "Judging by the amount of arterial spray on the wall, she lost about four and a half pints of blood, correct."
"Yes, about that Doctor Reid. Our estimates have it at about four point three."
Spencer nodded. "Thank you," he said a second later.
"Clear the room," CSI Foley yelled after a few seconds. Once the room was clear, he placed a pair of latex gloves on, and started moving around the room. He smiled and said, "I'm the UNSUB. I didn't force my way into the room, so I knew the victim. Intimately, we were intimate before I killed her."
He looked at the mirrors, noticing that they were all blacked out. "She's ashamed to look at herself. The burns on her body were hideous to look at, so she's disfigured." Spencer looked around the room.
"She was meticulous in her life, no shoes out of place. She lived a very strict schedule." He pulled out his phone.
"Hotch, I think Terra Parsons knew the UNSUB. She was sexually active right before she was murdered, and it wasn't rape. There are no signs of forced entry, and she has all her mirrors and windows blocked, so she wouldn't invite someone in she didn't know. I think we need to add Fire Chief Suede to our suspect list. He investigated the chemical fire three months ago. If he isn't the UNSUB, he knows who it is."
"Alright Reid, come on back to the station. We'll send an officer out to bring Fire Chief Suede in to talk to him."
With Hotch and JJ-
Hotch looked at the old police station with a bit of anxiety. This case was difficult enough, the team was down to an extremely short number, but now they were expected to work in an extremely cramped office? JJ was working diligently, contacting local and national media sources.
"JJ," he said, "We'll do the press conference after we deliver the profile. Are you all set up?"
She nodded. "Alright, I'm going to go see about backgrounds for the victims, do you need me to help with anything?"
"No thanks Hotch," she said as their unit chief walked away, holding a stack of case files. She spent about fifteen minutes getting assurances from local media that they'd be in the area in about an hour.
Hotch, she noticed, was a man on a mission. He was at the whiteboard, tacking photos and writing out what seemed to be a timeline. When his phone rang a few seconds later, she heard him slam his fist to the table in aggravation as he said, "Hotchner."
A stoic expression came to his face, "Hey Garcia, what do you have for us?"
She heard him turn on the speaker phone. "Who all is with you, oh captain my captain?"
"Just me, Garcia, Spence and Morgan are out at the moment."
"Hey Angelface," Garcia said, "So, I did some digging, cause that's how I roll. And I found out a couple of things. First, Michelle Garson and Terra Parsons were just awarded multi-million dollar settlements for the chemical fire, where they were both burned really badly. Michelle Garson's burns were mostly in places where they could be easily hid, like her stomach and thighs, but Terra Parsons was directly in the blast zone, and her face has been partially melted off. Also hospital records show that Juliet Holmes was the attending physician for both of them."
"Had Garcia," Hotch corrected softly. "She was found murdered this morning."
Garcia was quiet a moment, "Then I think this might help too. Apparently, Terra was recently engaged, and the day after the settlement came in, the Mayor's office was closed down so a Justice of the Peace could perform a wedding."
"Wedding," Hotch asked. Garcia's voice came over the phone, "Yeah. But here's the odd thing, the name of the groom was withheld, and the Justice of the Peace of Kent County, Rhode Island refuses to answer my question without a court order."
"Thanks Garcia, you need to… hold on… JJ's getting a call."
"Hey Spence," she said letting them know who was calling. "We're just waiting for you guys to get back so we can start the press conference. What's up? Shouldn't you have called Hotch? Or did you miss hearing my voice?" She grinned, letting Hotch know she was joking as she listened to his response.
"Yeah, he's on talking to Garcia, which is why you couldn't get hold him, because Garcia likes to talk too much," she said grinning again as Garcia scoffed in amusement.
"Hey Hotch," she said, "Spence says that Fire Chief Suede has only been on the job for two weeks, and that the old Chief was forced to retire early. He's finished talking with the Chief, and is going to head out to the crime scene, and then he'll be here in about thirty minutes."
She waited a few seconds, listening to him speak before she laughed and closed the phone.
"How is everything going with you two?" Hotch asked. JJ laughed and said, "Great. He's totally awkward, you know? But, he's eager to learn, and he's always so sweet. I think I'm falling in love with him, Hotch."
"Tell him, JJ," Hotch said, "It's totally worth it."
"I think I'm going too, after we get off this case. Anyways, I'm ready for the press conference as soon as you are."
Hotch nodded, as his phone rang. "It's Reid again," he said to JJ. She nodded, "I'm going for coffee. Do you want anything?"
He nodded.
"Hey Reid," the man said, "What do you have for me?"
He listened to Reid deliver a few needed pieces of the profile, thankful that it was coming together so easily.
"Thanks Reid, come on back to the station. We'll send an officer out to bring in Fire Chief Suede so we can talk to him."
Reid thanked him and hung up the phone. Hotch was about to turn back to the whiteboard when his phone rang again. It was Morgan.
"Reid just called," Hotch said, "He thinks that Terra Parsons knows the UNSUB. He also found out that Abigail Suede's husband wasn't the chief at the time of the chemical fire, but he was the one that investigated how it was set. He was only recently promoted to Fire Chief in the last two weeks. Also Garcia has confirmed that Doctor Holmes saw both of them after the fire."
"How old is the Fire Chief?" Hotch asked. When Derek told him the answer, he was surprised. "He definitely fits our profile, so far anyway. Reid thinks like you, if he isn't the UNSUB, he knows who it is. I'm going to have him added to the suspect list, just in case. I'll see you when you get here."
JJ re-entered as he hung up the phone, Reid walking behind her as the two of them talked softly to each other, a cup of coffee in both of their hands. When Derek arrived ten minutes later, he looked at the board, sat down and sighed, and took the cup of coffee Reid handed him with a silent 'thanks'.
"We're ready to give the profile." Hotch said, his face tired.
She watched the profilers straighten their backs, and hitch their shoulders, as they walked out into the bullpen where the local law enforcement officers were running about helter skelter.
A few minutes later had everyone looking at them, as Hotch started off. "We have a profile of the man we're looking for. When we describe the man we're looking for, some of you are going to immediately recognize someone that meets this description.
He's a Caucasian male between the ages of twenty-four and thirty-four. He's physically fit enough to attack and contain a woman, but not enough to completely scare them into not fighting back, so between five-six and five-eleven."
Derek continued, "He'll have grown up around here, and this won't be his first offense. He'll have an arrest, and probably time in juvenile detention."
Spence said, "Most importantly, he recently married the most recent victim, Terra Parsons, and he killed her in some sort of vengeance fantasy."
Derek again continued, "What this means is that he's been attempting to avenge Terra Parsons' injuries obtained during the chemical fire, and even went as far as to tell her what he'd done."
Hotch nodded, "We know this, because her death, while violent, came after she was willingly intimate with the UNSUB. We know that she recently married him, but the Justice of the Peace is withholding that information until we can obtain a warrant."
"We think the stressor," Reid said seeing their blank looks, "which is a term we use to indicate the event that caused the UNSUB to start targeting people, was the promotion of Fire Chief Suede, who investigated the fire that burned his wife."
"There's no evidence that she married anyone," a deputy asked, "How can you be sure?"
"Our technical analyst has uncovered a marriage license that has her name on it, a date, and a time, but the groom's name was blacked out." Hotch said.
"Alright," the Sheriff said, "What do we do now?"
"Now," Hotch said, "Now we deliver the profile too the people of Kent County, and see if anyone recognizes it. Sheriff, has your deputy returned from picking up Chief Suede?"
"He has, Mike's in the interrogation room. He's waived his Miranda rights."
"That's fine," Hotch said, "We know it isn't him."
The Sheriff nodded, confused.
"Reid, you have a rapport with the Fire Chief. He knows more than he's telling us, I need you too get him to open up."
Spence nodded, JJ noticed almost immediately. He took a deep breath, and walked into the room, fidgeting the entire time.
"Doctor Reid," Chief Suede said as he entered, "Can you tell me why I was arrested?"
Spence walked over to him and said, "I apologize for the inconvenience, Chief. It seems like someone has gone to great lengths to implicate you in the rapes and murders. I understand you've waived your Miranda rights?"
The man nodded, his body language shifting almost immediately.
"I'm going to give you a description of the man we're looking for. It's someone you know, someone you've talked too during your investigation into the chemical fire. He'll have been outspoken about your decision, even going as far as lobbying for you to be fired. When you were promoted recently, he took that as a personal offence."
The Chief nodded.
Spence read off the profile they'd just given too the police. And while everyone could see that he knew who it was, the Chief shook his head and said, "I haven't heard of anyone like that."
"Chief," Spencer said as the man went to stand up, "I know that you know who the UNSUB is, I can read it in your body language. I also know that you're planning on avenging your wife's recent assault. Please, tell us who it is, your wife can't handle losing you on top of what has happened. And your child needs his father."
"I don't know what you're talking about," the obviously angry man said. Spence sighed. He walked out and said, "Hotch? We need to hold him until we get the UNSUB."
"We can't," Hotch said sadly, "He hasn't committed a crime, and premeditating a crime isn't illegal. Cut him loose," Hotch said, "But keep an officer on him at all times."
"We will," he said, "But what now?"
"Now," Hotch said, "we have to hope that the press conference will give us something."
A half-hour later, and JJ stood in front of the local police station, her hair swaying in the breeze; Hotch, Morgan and Reid behind her with the Chief of Police and Mayor.
"The FBI was called in too assist in finding the rapist attack local women. We are prepared to release a profile and general description of the man we are looking for, in the hopes that someone that knows him will step forward. The man we're looking for is Caucasian between the ages of twenty-four and thirty-four. He stands between five foot six inches, and five-foot-eleven inches, and will be physically fit, but not well-built.
We know he's recently married the most recent victim, Terra Parsons, who we found murdered this morning, in a private ceremony. We tell you this, not too scare the public, but to inform everyone of the seriousness of this situation. He will also have protested the recent promotion of Fire Chief Suede. His actions have been in retaliation to what he perceived as aggression towards his fiancé after the chemical fire at the local plant.
I can now take a few questions."
"What makes you think this profile is accurate?" a male reporter asked. JJ looked at him and said, "The Behavioral Analysis Unit was formed too combat some of the most heinous criminal's of the age. The profilers you see use a mix of precedent; psychology and sociology too understand how the criminal thinks."
"How accurate are these profiles?" a female reporter asked looking at Spence and glaring. She stepped aside, gesturing for Spence to answer.
"Profiles are accurate in 99% of all our cases," he did.
"Isn't this just junk science," a third reporter, male, asked. JJ said, "Not at all. Profiles just help narrow the suspect pool down, say there are a thousand people suspected of a crime, but you only need five names out of those thousand. Our profiles narrow down the suspect, as we said, based on criteria; age, height, weight and precedent."
"Profile me then," a fourth said, leering at her. Hotch stepped forward and did just that.
"You're going through a messy divorce; you were caught cheating on your wife. I know this because of the fact that you're missing your wedding ring, and your clothes are wrinkled, and your eyes are sunken like you haven't slept well in a few days. The woman you cheated with looks similar to Agent Jareau, in looks, but unlike Agent Jareau, she fell for your leeching ways too quickly, which means she was probably still in high school, because most women won't fall for that as they get older."
The man paled, and said, "She was eighteen, you pervert!"
Hotch just smiled, "I never said she wasn't, and you just admitted to it."
The man glared at him and stomped away.
"If you recognized the profile, please call the Warwick, Rhode Island police department at the number running across your screen now. Thank you."
Once they were inside, Hotch glared and said, "I hate having to perform like a side-show to catch these animals."
"I know, it's been so long since this happened," Derek said, "Look, let's face it, this shit happens man."
A couple more hours passed, the team going over a list of suspects, when the Sheriff entered and said, "We have a suspect."
The team was up immediately, their sidearms armed, and vests in place.
"Who is the suspect?" Hotch asked. The team followed the sheriff and his deputies.
"Argyle Reynolds," he said quietly.
"The Mayor's son," Derek said his eyes wide.
"Yeah, your warrant came back for the Justice of the Peace. He said that he performed a private ceremony for the Mayor's son just after Terra Parson's was awarded her settlement. Before that, they'd never been involved, and she didn't know him. We also found a latent print on the jug of bleach; it was burned into the plastic, and covered with soot. We ran the print, and it came back too Argyle Reynolds."
"How did he get access?"
"The Reynolds family has owned the plant for years," the sheriff said.
"And since the Mayor is his father, he had the old chief fired, probably to cover up what happened?"
The team cursed, angry at the turn of events.
When they arrived to the gated house, security guards were all over the property. "You can't come in here," one said snootily to the Sheriff. Hotch stepped out, his best glare in place and he said, "If you don't move your men out of the way, I will have you all arrested for harboring fugitives."
The security guard was about to respond when he saw their vests and said, "There are Feds arriving, boys. Pull out!"
The security guards scattered. The boss said, "Sorry, we were told there was a threat too the Mayor's life."
"Misuse of power," the Sheriff said ironically. "Can we arrest them now, please?"
Hotch nodded, "My team will enter first, but we'll let you make the arrest."
"Thanks," the man said. Ten minutes, it was over, both Reynolds men in custody.
The trip back to Quantico was silent, the team melancholy.
"We survived this one," Spence whispered in her ear. She shivered at the feeling of his breath on her, and said, "We did. I didn't think we would, but we did."
Spence nodded, his arms wrapped around her waist, as he lightly placed kisses to her neck.
When they arrived back at Quantico later that night, JJ and he met at their cars.
"My place or yours tonight," JJ asked softly. Spence smiled and cupped her face, "Yours. It's been a couple of days since you were at home, and I have more than enough clothes in your closet by now."
She nodded, a soft smile on her face. They piled in their cars, and drove quickly through the empty streets of Quantico.
When they arrived back to her apartment, JJ smiled as she stepped in, not surprised at the pile of mail on her floor. She placed the mail on the table and told Spence to go sit on the couch while she got a couple of sandwiches ready.
When she sat down five minutes later, she immediately turned to him and said, "before we eat, I need to say something."
Spence sat the plate down and locked his gaze with her.
"Over the last month, I've had more heartache and more happiness than I though possible. A lot of the happiness is because of you, Spence. You've helped me passed a horrible moment. But," she said, "But if I've learned anything, its that we need to stop living with regrets, because we won't know when our life could end. So," she said, cupping his chin. "So, I need you to know that I love you. I love you Spencer William Reid."
Spence looked at her, shock in his gaze as he pulled her close and gave her an electrifying kiss. Her heart sang out, only seconds later, when Spence said, "I love you too, JJ. I love you so much, and you're not the only one exceptionally happy through it all."
She smiled.
"When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears. When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears. I held your hand through all of these years, but you still have all of me. – Amy Lee, Evanescence"