A/N: Hey, here's the next chapter. This was a fun one.

Chapter Seven

Marley sat in one of the choir chairs, keeping one eye on Ryder even as Agent Morgan straddled a chair across from her.

"So, Marley Rose," Derek Morgan smiled. "That's a pretty name."

"Thank you Sir."

The agent turned around following Marley's eyes to where Ryder sat. "How long have you known Ryder?"

"I met him at orientation, so two years now." Marley nodded. "Yeah, two years. We're both sophomores."

"I see." Derek nodded to himself as he wrote something down. "And Ryder hasn't spoken to you in all that time?"

Marley shook her head. "No. But we did audition for the glee club. His playing and dancing got him in like right away." She laughed. "Plus, the club was kind of dying for members." She frowned as a thought occurred to her. "He's not dumb though."

Derek sighed. "I wasn't saying that he is Marley. It's all good."

"Sorry." Marley blinked. "It's just Ryder's gotten so much crap, I guess I just get defensive."

"Nothing wrong with that." Derek said. " I'd be worried if you didn't. So how does Ryder communicate with you?"

Marley nodded toward where the boy was strumming his guitar. "He uses songs. He'll play something and you've got to figure out what he's trying to say. I've tried to get him to write, but the only thing he'll write for you is his name. And sometimes he uses things around him, but he never writes, only if you can't figure it out and he feels sorry for you." She grinned. "He's kind of got a wicked sense about that sort of thing. His dad says it's cause he likes a challenge."

Derek smiled. "I know someone like that too." He stood. "Well, thanks for your help Marley. We've got to get you guys down to the station."

Tommy was getting to the jumpy part of the night, but he knew he needed to get in the bath before bed, or at least before his third round of video gaming. Maybe Miss J would let him stay up an extra hour.

He walked into the bathroom and ran the water, beginning to get undressed.

"Tommy?" It was all the boy could do to cover himself with the towel as he turned around to see his babysitter.

"Miss J, why are you in here?"

The young woman walked over peeling the towel away from Tommy. "I just wanted to see if you needed any help."

Tommy took in a shuddering breath as the woman's fingers crept around. "N...no. I'm good."

"Are you sure?" Miss J chuckled. "I just thought we could have some fun."

"Miss J… what are you doing?" The boy grew pale as Miss J lay him on the towel and got on top of him. His eyes widened further as he noticed a young man walking in to the room with a knife.

"Just be quiet and you'll be fine Tommy." Miss J smiled.

The group got out of the van as Ryder looked up at the building. He had passed the police station multiple times on bike rides around the neighborhood and he'd waited for Blaine here on many occasions as well, but never before had it felt so enormous. He swallowed as he felt the familiar warmth of a hand.

"You okay?" Marley leaned over pecking him on the forehead.

Ryder looked at her blinking hard as he shrugged.

"Here." Marley reached into the backseat pulling out his guitar case. "I asked Agent Morgan to keep it in the backseat instead of the trunk."

Ryder smiled slipping the strap securely over his shoulder before taking the empty case from Marley. He noticed the younger agent...or rather... doctor watching him. He frowned looking at Marley as he plucked his guitar strings to the theme of a familiar sci-fi show.

"Yeah, I think that's Dr. Spencer Reid." Marley said. "The one Mr. Schue called agent by mistake."

Ryder began plucking strings again, the Rockwell tune causing Marley to giggle.

"Relax Ry'. I think he's one of the profilers Blaine was talking about. He's supposed to be."

Ryder lifted his arms, looking at her incredulous.

"I know it doesn't, but he might be nice."

Ryder pulled his lips together.

"You're overthinking Ry'. Now come on!" Marley grabbed Ryder's hand dragging him through the open door.

Reid walked slowly toward the station keeping an eye on the two friends ahead of him. He knew he shouldn't. He knew what it was like to feel eyes on him, but he wasn't sure of any other way to learn about the boy who he would, no doubt, be tasked with interviewing. He was a human puzzle and the puzzles were almost always Reid's responsibility. It was all fine by him. He didn't resent it. He rather enjoyed it and gravitated toward the challenging parts of any case. It was the human part that worried him.

He'd been told for most of his life that he had a hard time reading social cues, kind of ironic for a profiler. In a way, he considered himself lucky that he had such an amazing team of coworkers to bounce off of. In working at the BAU with the team he considered a family, he'd learned so much more than he could have ever learned from books. He only hoped this knowledge could help him get through to the broken young man with the guitar.

He walked through the door met by Hotch who pulled him aside and away from the earshot of the three high school students. "I already asked Prentiss to help you in talking to Ryder and his friends. Morgan gave me the notes he got from his interview with Marley Rose." Hotch handed Reid the file.

"Thanks."

The older man nodded.

Reid sighed as he opened the door to the interview room to see Emily sitting at the table. His face brightened considerably. "Hey Emily."

"Hey," The dark haired woman glanced through the window as her eyes landed on the teenagers. "How is he?"

"I don't know." Reid said. "I didn't talk to him."

Emily's eyebrows knit together. "You didn't?"

"I watched."

"Reid!" Emily sighed. "He's not a jungle cat. You have to build rapport."

"That's what we're doing now right? We have time."

Rossi leaned in the door, apparently having overheard. "Not so much, there's sort of been another victim."

Prentiss raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean sort of?"

"The parents called it in as soon as 9'o clock last evening." Anderson showed the pictures. The boy had stab wounds, but he lay in a hospital bed, eyes half closed, but alive. "Mr. and Mrs. Kyle, apparently, rushed home when their son Tommy wouldn't respond when he answered the phone."

"You mean he wasn't talking?" Prentiss said. "What was different this time?"

" How come the UnSub let this kid live?" Morgan crossed his arms.

Reid saw images flashing before his eyes: the tongues cut roughly out of the mouth, the jagged throat cuts. "What if the tongue cutting and the murders aren't the UnSub's MO?"

Hotch looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Reid leaned forward. "Think about it. The tongue is the muscle used in talking. What if the difference between Tommy, Geoffrey and Hector was whether or not they protested?"

"I'm not following." JJ said.

"What if the children's silence is what the UnSub is after?"

Morgan's eyes lit up in recognition. "It would make sense, especially when coupled with the sexual assault."

"We have to talk to Ryder Lynn." Emily said. "Now."

"Morgan and I will go find out what we can get from the Kyles." Hotch said.

" Anderson and I will go talk to Ryder's parents." Rossi said. "I'll text you with any information." Rossi directed this to Prentiss.

Prentiss nodded as she and Reid walked out and toward the interview room where Ruiz was already getting the teenagers settled.

"Hi, Ryder?" Prentiss sat down directing her attention to the boy seated in the center. "I'm Emily Prentiss, this is Dr. Spencer Reid." Reid sat in the chair beside her. "We're with the FBI. We just want to talk for a few minutes, is that okay?"

Ryder studied them with an intensity, for what seemed like an hour, but probably couldn't have been more than five minutes, before nodding.

Emily grabbed a pad of paper and a pen as the girl, Marley, shook her head. "He won't write anything for you Miss Prentiss."

"Oh." Emily pulled the paper back. "Okay."

"Ryder…?" Reid looked at the boy. "Can you tell me how old you are?" Test questions were always a good base point, Reid found, especially when dealing with communication limitations. It gave both him and Prentiss a chance to see how the boy communicated.

Prentiss raised her eyebrows as the boy pulled forward his guitar. Reid, who had read Morgan's notes beforehand (In two minutes) was less surprised.

Marley sang quietly. At least she could provide a bit of a hand in that regard. "I am sixteen going on seventeen."

"So you're sixteen then?"

Ryder nodded.

"Okay." Reid gave the boy an encouraging smile. "Great."

"How long have you been playing guitar?" Emily asked. It wasn't an answer that was in the file, but maybe a little small talk would get the boy comfortable.

Ryder bit his lip as he figured out a song choice. He began playing, the familiar chords like a second skin. He watched out of the corner of his eye as the profilers listened.

Blaine smiled, almost tempted to sing the verse, but as he saw Ryder's half smirk, decided against it. He wanted them to figure it out.

"Billy Joel right?" Dr. Reid asked.

Blaine nodded.

"Now why would he…?" Emily mumbled. "My life." She looked at Reid. "Most of your life?" She asked.

Ryder nodded, grinning. They'd figured it out. Maybe this could go okay.

Rossi and Anderson stood on the porch as Anderson knocked quickly on the door. "Rebecca, Brandon, it's Les!"

"Les," Brandon Lynn opened the door. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at work?"

Anderson sighed, giving the man all the answer he needed.

"Mr. Lynn," Rossi spoke, his voice gentler than it's usual jovial manner. "My name is David Rossi, I'm with the FBI. I'd like to ask you and your family some questions about your son Ryder."

Brandon nodded. "Come on in. Rebecca's picking Alyssa up from the airport, but they should be home soon. Is Ryder okay?"

"Ryder's fine." Anderson replied. "He's down at the station with Blaine and Marley."

Rossi noticed Mr. Lynn's face change. "I told Rebecca it was nothing. I thought Ryder had just gotten scared because it was so close to home."

"The news report you mean?" Rossi clarified.

Brandon nodded. "Is that why he's at the station Les? Because of those murders?"

Anderson sighed. "We think he may be an important witness."

"Witness Les! He's five, six years older than those kids. Isn't there some sort of victim pool… a pattern?"

Anderson sighed rubbing his forehead. "Brandon, I think this may be about what happened five years ago." He looked from Brandon to Rossi.

Brandon stood clearing his throat. "Can I get you guys something to drink, coffee, tea, water?"

"I'll take a coffee." Rossi said. "Thank you."

"Water?" Brandon turned to Les who nodded. Brandon tossed Les a bottle before walking away to brew the coffee.

"So, what happened five years ago?" Rossi glanced at Anderson.

Anderson shrugged, his voice dropping to a whisper. "I don't know much, but according to the captain, the Lynns came back home after leaving Ryder with a sitter to find the kid shivering and quiet as a mouse, completely traumatized."

Rossi knit his brows together. "Hmm… sounds familiar."

Anderson nodded as Brandon reentered, holding a mug of coffee which he placed in front of the FBI agent.

"So… I just got a text from Rebecca. She and Alyssa are five minutes away."

"Okay." Rossi studied the man as he took a sip of his coffee, noting his slumped shoulders and darting eyes. He was nervous. Sometimes memories were more deadly than any weapon.

"So how's Lyssa?" Anderson was handling the small talk. Rossi found himself grateful that the cop had so many town connections. "Did she get that part she was after?"

"Maria you mean?" Brandon was struggling to keep his voice light. The conversation, according to the profiler's ear, was completely forced. "Oh, I don't even know. Last time she skyped, she was one of six. Callbacks are Thursday."

"I would be surprised if she didn't. She and Coop used to play Captain and Maria Von Trapp all the time didn't they?" Anderson was trying really hard to get the man's mind off of things.

Brandon laughed. "And our youngest two the children."

Rossi raised his eyebrows. "The Sound of Music?"

Brandon nodded. "My daughter auditioned for a revival in New York."

"Wow."

The three men heard a key in the door as Rebecca and a brunette girl walked into the house.

The girl met Brandon's eyes. "Dad, what's going on?"

Les and Rossi looked at each other as Les stepped forward. "Rebecca, Alyssa, I was wondering if we could ask you a few questions about Ryder?"

Rebecca looked at her husband, nodding carefully. "Of course."

The family sat on the sofa as Rossi and Anderson pulled two dining room chairs in front of them.

"What can you tell us about Ryder? How was he… before?" Les asked the first question.

"Before…" Rebecca shut her eyes tight, steeling herself as Rossi noticed the girl, Alyssa walking to the bookshelf and pulling a photo album. "Ryder was… is… one of the nicest kids I know."

Les grabbed Rebecca's hand. "Just try to think back for me Becca. I know it's hard."

"He would always be singing." Alyssa brought the photo album back, opening it to a page showing a picture of two kids, a girl with a microphone and a boy with the same dirt blond hair as the teenager back at the station. " Always. I used to put on concerts and Ryder would copy me. I used to think it was annoying, but…" she choked on a sob. "He always said as soon as he was old enough, he'd find me in New York and we'd form a band, be the next Beatles."

Rossi leaned forward. "So he likes music?"

"The boy breathes music." Brandon said. "He's always either playing his guitar or the piano. Lyssa taught him everything he knows."

"You two seem pretty close." Rossi flipped through the photo album as his eyes drifted over the pictures: several of which involved Ryder and Alyssa at various ages.

Alyssa nodded. "Dad says we were each other's shadows, Ryder more so. He would always ask to see the music I played, taught himself how to play a ton of songs by ear. I guess… I guess I should be grateful I gave him the music bug otherwise… I don't think we'd hear anything from him at all." Alyssa shut her eyes, leaning into her mother.

Rossi and Anderson looked at each other as Anderson motioned Rossi aside.

"I can bring Alyssa to the station. Maybe it will help make Ryder more comfortable, at least give Dr. Reid and Prentiss some ideas to get through to him."

"Good idea Les." Rossi nodded. "I'll finish up with Mr. and Mrs. Lynn here."

A/N: Ok, so there was another victim, but Tommy wasn't murdered. Hotch and Morgan went to the hospital to try to get answers. Reid and Emily started talking to Ryder. Rossi met the Lynns, including Ryder's older sister Alyssa who is portrayed by Anna Kendrick. Anderson decided to bring Alyssa to the station in an effort to help Reid and Prentiss get through to Ryder. The songs that were referenced in this chapter are the Doctor Who Theme, Somebody's Watching Me by Rockwell, Sixteen Going on Seventeen from the Sound of Music and My Life by Billy Joel. Next up, Hotch and Morgan at the hospital, more with Ryder's parents, Ryder and Alyssa, and Reid and Emily.