Chapter One


Eleven days earlier

Monday, April 5, 2004

6:48 P.M.

SSA UNIT Chief Aaron Hotchner stacked files upon one another in the crook of his arm. He was helping JJ, formally known as Special Agent Jennifer Jareau, clean up the mess of paperwork on the jet the Behavioral Analysis Unit, a.k.a. BAU, used to travel cross-country and solve federal cases involving serial murders. The jet was a mess from anyone's point of view. Their latest case had taken them to Salt Lake City, Utah, where a series of gruesome murders had kept them under constant stress (and fear, though none of the team would ever admit to the feeling) for almost a month. Now back in Quantico, Virginia, each of them hoped to have the weekend to themselves. Even SSA Dr. Spencer Reid vowed to read no more than five books over the next couple of days for the sake of rest.

"Thanks, Hotch," JJ smiled and took the files from Aaron's hands, "you should go home, too. Get some rest."

"You too, JJ." Aaron extended his arm at the open door of the jet, insisting on JJ stepping off the plane first.

"Oh, I'm not so sure about that. I have to pick out the next case for us," as Aaron playfully winced, JJ laughed, "yep, it's someone's job."

Again Aaron, being the gentleman he was, opened the door to the FBI headquarters and allowed JJ to go in first.

"I have some paperwork to complete before I go home, JJ. It's someone's job to tell the story of Katie, Amber, Hannah, and all of the other girls Juneburg murdered ." Aaron would have smiled jokingly, if he had not thought back on his words and the weight they carried. JJ's long blond hair fell across her face as she understood his thought process. She brushed her hair back and smiled, nodding empathetically. Turning for her office, JJ's heels clicked upon the blue carpet behind her as she locked herself in her office.

0o-o-o-o0o-o-o-o0

8:25 P.M.

An hour and a half later, Aaron still found himself on the Salt Lake Murders Case paperwork. He sighed, holding his face, imagining how warm Haley Hotchner's waiting arms would be when he would finally be able to lay down in bed for rest tonight. He lifted his head and began to work more vigorously, having found his muse. And still, two more hours later, Aaron was not even half-way done with his work. Deciding he should take a break -and that a full three cups of coffee would help just as much-, Aaron stood from his desk, cluttered with dozens of papers and files, and exited his office. And to his horrified shock, Aaron found his entire team still at their desks, filling out their own paperwork.

"What- are you guys doing? I told you all to go home." His voice was hard and, beneath its many thick layers, joyous and proud. SSA Derek Morgan, a handsome young African American man who came from Chicago, looked up at his team's leader and cocked an eyebrow.

"You think we were gonna' let you drown in this paperwork? Hell no, Hotch. We're your team and we're here for you, whether bullets and bodies are involved or not." Derek's set expression did not change, and he concentrated once more on the fat files of paperwork that were strewn across his desk. Aaron's salt-and-pepper hair almost visibly bristled.

Looking at the desks of each BAU member, Aaron found that everyone else's desk was just as obliterated with papers as his own was. Except for Spencer's, of course. Being able to read 20,000 words per minute, he had half as much paperwork as everyone else, though Aaron decided he took on twice as much because of this. The young doctor looked up, tossing back his stringy, paper-bag brown hair, as SSA Emily Prentiss spoke.

"Yeah, come one, Hotch. You seriously thought we were just gonna' leave you all of this on a Friday night?" Emily scrupulously stared at Aaron through her disheveled black hair.

"Honestly, you should be the one going home, Hotch," this came from Spencer, who smiled weakly, "none of us have a spouse waiting for us after work."

"Speak for yourself, Reid," Derek smirked, and Emily laughed.

"Spouse? If you call a strange twenty year old woman, who will probably forget your name by morning, you meet at a random bar a spouse, then yeah," Spencer leaned forward, suddenly finding a blank document on Word transfixing.

"Yeah, you keep talkin', Reid. You're just jealous 'cause you can't get a lovely little lady for yourself."

"Jealous of syphilis? No, thanks..."

"O-h!" Emily cried out, laughing at Derek, who reigned in a flush. Derek licked his lips.

"You better watch yourself, pretty boy. Lying's not very nice, and paybacks-"

"-are a bitch. Yes, I think we've discussed this before, Derek. It's more humorous than frightening the umpteenth time around." Spencer flicked his eyes at his victim, studying his expression, before smirking at the amused and shocked Derek Morgan.

"Settle down, children, settle down. Don't make me call your moms," JJ, who had stepped out of her office for a cup of coffee, and also fixed Aaron his second, cocked an eyebrow at the immature, and very nearly inappropriate, banter issuing from the office valley, "you're both grown men, I'm sure you can behave like one." She laughed and tapped cups with Aaron.

"But JJ! He started it!" Spencer pointed at Derek, who shook his head, let out a gentle laugh, then stuck his head back into his paperwork. JJ waved Spencer off with an apologetic smile, shrugging lightly.

"Hey, before anyone gets too into their paperwork, I have... a case I would like for everyone to consider," JJ spoke delicately, knowing that none of them would be excited about the prospect of another case, "I know, I know; we all just got home from a back-breaker, but this one could really use our help as well."

"It's alright, JJ. Just give us the specifics and we can come in tomorrow and cover it." Aaron lifted his cup of coffee and pointed it to the faces of the rest of the tired team.

"What about Garcia?" Spencer looked around for their self-proclaimed 'Tech Wizard,' but could not find her.

"I'll call her later and let her know what's up," Aaron comforted. Spencer and Derek nodded, turning around in their chairs to face Aaron. Emily, however, was not yet fully satisfied with the situation.

"And the new girl, uh... what's her name-"

"Jordan Renae Harlem," Spencer's eyebrow twitched as he read over her file in his mind: an eidetic memory could come in handy when questions of identity arose. Emily eyed him with a slightly disturbed expression.

"Why do you-"

"Emily, Emily," Derek shook his head as though it were a lost cause. What it was, however, Spencer could not rightly identify. Emily nodded her head tiredly.

"Anyway, Hotch... What're we gonna' do about her?" Emily looked from JJ to Aaron, who were both undecided on the issue. Finally, Aaron spoke up.

"Let's leave it up to her. I'll call her later as well, and see if she wants to start early." Emily nodded, and, finally contented, looked at JJ. "Go ahead, JJ," Aaron took a sip of his coffee; Spencer laced his hands on top of his crossed legs, leaning back to a more comfortable position in his chair; Derek leaned forward in his chair, an intense expression knitting his eyebrows together; and Emily rested her right arm on her desk, leaning into it; JJ set her coffee down and picked up the files she had laid down on the counter and walked over to the three SSAs, with Aaron behind her.

After the summary of the case, the team exchanged a glum look with one another. JJ uncomfortably shifted her weight from one foot to the other and looked at Aaron, who nodded.

"So, what do you guys think?" JJ almost felt self-conscious.

"I think these people really need our help," Derek clasped his hands together between his knees.

"Definitely," Emily nodded her head, "this guy is obviously very angry. And with his sporadic time line, he seems to be trying to figure out what works best for him. When he finds his niche..."

"He won't stop; he'll keep going until he's run head first into his grave." Spencer looked at his team mates, hoping one of them would contradict his last statement. Nothing of the like happened, and Spencer nervously swallowed the lump in his throat.

"So, everybody in tomorrow morning at seven to cover the case," Aaron nodded and headed back to his office, "if any of you would like to spend the night here... you're more than welcome to." Aaron's voice was exhausted and disappointed. He had really hoped to grant his subordinates a pleasant weekend.

Sitting down at his desk, Aaron looked at the phone on top of it. He would make three phone calls tonight. One would break the hearts of his heart, the other should be classified as disturbing the peace, and the last one leading a young girl into a career she might surely regret taking on. Aaron decided he was very tired then, and did not know what to do about it.

So, he picked up his phone, broke his heart, disturbed the peace, and then set it down for a small intermittent break. He had broken his heart many times; he felt sick thinking it, but he was becoming numb to the crack in the asphalt that grew over half his heart. And calling their technical analyst Penelope Garcia was not all too difficult: she was ready and willing to help them. But for some reason, it was proving a difficult task to call newly-appointed SSA Dr. Jordan Harlem. No, not some reason. He was leading her to hell. Aaron cast his thoughts away and picked up the phone.

0o-o-o-o0o-o-o-o0

10:58 P.M.

Rr-rrr...

Rr-rrr...

Rr-rrr...

Tchk.

"Hello?"

"SSA Jordan Harlem, this is SSA Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner with the FBI. We spoke on the phone the other day?"

"Uh, yeah... um, yeah! Oh, Agent Hotchner! I-Is something wrong?"

"Not exactly. The team and I have a case to cover that was just brought to our attention-" This late? These people are unstoppable... Jordan shivered at the thought of working alongside workaholics. "Agent Harlem?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Agent Hotchner! I was asleep and you woke me up and I'm just really frazzled right now..." Jordan sat up, her scraggly, dirty blond hair a messy halo around her scrunched up face.

"That's alright, Harlem. I do apologize for calling this late. If you would like, you don't have to accompany us on this case," a moment of small silence. Jordan took the time to think, sleepiness slowing down the process.

"Uh, no, that's okay. I can be there..."

"Thank you, Agent Harlem. I'll see you then-"

"Wait, wait! What time?" Jordan brushed her hair behind her ear, her heart pounding nervously.

"...Tomorrow, seven a.m."

"Okay! Okay, sir! Thank you very much for calling. I will be there bright and early!"

"Thank you, Agent Harlem."

"And you, Mr. Hotchner," she slapped her hand over her mouth, cursing herself.

"...Good night." The line went dead.

"I did not just call him mister Hotchner... Oh, God... what have I done..." Jordan fell back against her pillow, slapping herself. Humiliation burned bright against her pale cheeks, but this did not keep her from sleep.


AUTHOR'S NOTE: I almost couldn't make myself write this, but... yay I did, right? I know it's a tad boring, sorry... It was prologue worthy as well, and I just wanted to include it. Hm. And each chapter will have no more than 2,000 words. Just... a thing I'm doing. Just feel like it.

Oh, and this is third person... not omniscient, per se. Let's just go with objective, I guess...

Review!

Merci~ \m/