Perfection Chapter 10: A New Lead, a criminal minds fanfic

Perfection

Chapter Ten: A New Lead

By Ann Parker (Movie)

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"Murderers will try to recall the sequence of events, they will remember exactly what they did just before and just after. But they can never remember the actual moment of killing. This is why they will always leave a clue." – Peter Ackroyd

The shrill ringing of his cell phone woke Reid up with a start. Glancing at the nightstand, the hotel's alarm clock glared 4:45 am. He grabbed his phone and quickly answered it, trying not to wake Sarah. It had only been a few hours ago when she had woken both of them up from another flashback, not that it had surprised him.

"Reid," he whispered into the phone. "Yeah, we can be there in about a half hour," he sighed, hanging up. Hotch wanted them to get to the sheriff's office. They had narrowed down a list of possible leaks from the prison but wanted Sarah to look it over to see if any name stood out. Morgan and Gideon were going to make their way to the prison and question the suspects to help narrow down the search area. And they wanted to get this all done before sunrise so they were out looking for him at first light. Logical enough for Reid, but he hated the idea of having to wake her. Never mind the fact that he hadn't gotten much sleep either, trying to be alert in case their protection wasn't as good as they thought. They hadn't had any problems so far, however.

Glancing back at his fiancée, it amazed him how peaceful she could look went she slept, at least when she wasn't fighting a demon in her dream. Her hair was tossed across her pillow, partly covering her face, and he reached over to push it out of the way. She stirred slightly at his touch and he smiled. Even during a time like this he couldn't believe how lucky he was. If someone had told him about a year ago that he would in love with a beautiful woman that loved him in return, he would have thought they were crazy.

Sighing, he reached over and caressed her cheek. She stirred a little more and he reached over and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled up at him.

"Hey," she whispered. He noticed her eyes glance behind him at the clock. "I'm guessing you're waking me up for a reason," she sighed, the time registering in her head.

"Hotch needs us to get to the sheriff's office," he nodded. She simply nodded and kicked off the bedding. He followed her as they got up and quickly got dressed. A few silent minutes later, they were just about to head out the door when Sarah pulled him into a hug.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned that she was going to have another episode like last night.

"I'm sorry I've got such baggage," she replied. He ran his fingers through her hair, kissing her forehead.

"I've got baggage too," he stated. She pulled him into a quick kiss. "Now, let's go catch him. We've got a wedding to plan." She laughed slightly, pushing some of his hair out his face.

"That we do. Let's go," she replied. They grabbed their guns and headed out the door, Reid leading the way.

"Here's the list," Hotch handed Sarah a list of possible suspects almost the moment they walked through the door. She looked it over and they noticed her stop at a name.

"Frank Johnson," she stated, glancing up at the sheriff.

"Johnson? He's always been a bad seed, how did he get a job at the prison?" replied Davids. For his part, he seemed have finally taken Sarah's side and now believed they were dealing with a murderer. Although it would be hard to deny it any longer now that there was even more blood on his hand. Hotch flipped open his phone and called Morgan.

"Start with Johnson. You might want to see if Garcia can dig up any extra information on him." Hotch hung up and glanced at the rest of the team. "They're on it. Let's work on planning out our search pattern in case they can't get any new leads."

"Hotch says Sarah suggested Johnson," Morgan informed Gideon. They were a few minutes away from the prison. Gideon nodded and Morgan called his favorite lady for more background information.

"What's happening, Hot Stuff?" Garcia's sweet voice teased through his phone and he smiled.

"Hey baby girl, I need you to look up Frank Johnson for me. If he's got skeleton's in his closet, I need to know about it," he replied.

"A little morbid choice of words for five in the morning," she teased, typing away. "Hey, how's my girl holding up?" Morgan immediately knew who she was referring to, the pair had grown quite close since Sarah had joined the team.

"I didn't see her this morning, but she seemed okay yesterday. Got anything yet?" he replied, getting back to the task at hand. The truth was he wasn't sure if she was really okay yesterday, but didn't want to speculate with Gideon right next to him. It had been rough on him when the team learned about his past and he couldn't imagine it was any easier for Sarah.

"Here we go." Garcia's voice forced him to push those thoughts aside. "Johnson has a juvenile record for getting into several violent fights at school and for poaching. It says here that he did his time and community service so it technically expunged even though it left a paper trail. That must be why it didn't pop up when he applied to the prison."

"Does it say who else was involved in the fights?" Gideon pulled up to the prison as Morgan asked.

"Let's see…he's best friend apparently initiated the fights…a Samuel Levine," Garcia replied. She could almost hear Morgan shake his head at other end.

"Thanks sweetness. We got him," he hung up and Morgan turned to Gideon as they walked up to the prison gates. "Its him. Levine and him were best friends and he served in juve with him." Gideon shook his head and they entered the prison in silence.