It was 8:13 a.m. when the team arrived in St. Louis.
Morgan slowly exited the plane stretching his arms above his head. He smiled as he thought how close he was to home. He missed seeing his mother and sisters daily. His job was important though. And being that he was with the BAU, he could only work from Quantico, Virginia. Morgan pushed those thoughts to the side. He needed to focus. There were murdered teenagers who needed him. They needed someone to speak on their behalf and, more importantly, they needed justice.
The team split into two groups. Hotcher and Prentiss dropped Reid and J.J. off at the police station since it was on their way to the visit the first victim's family. The group spoke about the case as they made the 25 minute ride to the station. Once they left the station, Hotchner and Prentiss fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Prentiss still called him "sir" though everyone preferred the more amicable "Hotch." Prentiss knew why she felt awkward around him. She needed his approval. She had clawed her way into the unit. She made sure every supervisor at every evaluation knew about her intentions. She wanted to join the BAU. Sure, she probably could have had her mother pull a few strings. Ambassador Prentiss has significant pull in Washington . But, that's not what she wanted. She wanted to make it on her own merit. She needed to succeed and for that, she needed Aaron Hotcher's approval.