"Wittman's place is on the fourth floor" Reid said as they walked over to the elevator. Reid and Morgan got in but there wasn't much room for Hotch.
"I'll... meet you guys up there" Hotch said walking off to take the stairs. Morgan pressed the button but nothing happened and the elevator made a weird noise.
"Don't do that" Reid said scared.
"Why isn't it moving?" Morgan asked.
"I don't know" Reid muttered as Morgan started pressing all the buttons.
"Don't—stop it! Don't..." Reid said.
"What? What's the problem?" Morgan asked.
"Don't do that!" Reid snapped.
"Why not?" Morgan asked confused.
"Because there are 6 elevator related deaths per year, not to mention 10,000 injuries that require hospitalization. Chill out" Reid said firmly.
"That sounds like pretty good odds to me. Are you scared, Reid? I don't want to be in an elevator with you, to be honest" Reid snapped as Morgan kept pushing the buttons.
"How about I push that? What if I push that?" Morgan teased before the elevator shook suddenly.
"Whoa. Ok" Morgan said holding onto the walls scared.
"Hit the—hit the- yeah. Push it!" Reid said as they pushed the button for the emergency alarm.
"Push, pull, push, pull. I'm doing it. Nothing's happening" Morgan said scared.
"Pry-pry—pry the door open. Just—yeah" Reid ordered.
"It's stuck, man" Morgan yelled.
"No, no, no, no. Not today" Morgan begged as they elevator kept moving.
"Hotch?" Reid squeaked out scared while all he could think of was Lilith.
"Hotch!" Morgan shouted as Hotch walked over to the elevator as the doors opened. Morgan ran out of there quickly.
"Was that the alarm? You guys ok?" Hotch asked.
"I'll get back to you on that" Reid said walking out of the elevator breathing heavily as Hotch walked off with a small smile on his face.
"FBI was already here 2 days ago. Didn't find anything" The landlord said as he let them into the apartment.
"We're from the Behavioural Analysis Unit" Reid stated.
"What's that mean?" Landlord asked confused.
"It means that we study human behaviour.
We don't just look at evidence. It helps us to determine why this killer chose this victim. The place has a lived-in feel to it" Reid commented.
"It looks like she spent most of her free time here" Hotch stated
"No messages on the answering machine" Reid added.
"Hey, guys. Come take a look at this. There's bath products all around the tub, but she never turned the shower on" Morgan explained as they walked into the bathroom.
"What makes you say that?" The Landlord asked curiously.
"It's got nothing but boxes inside. She used it for storage" Morgan said opening the shower door to reveal boxed.
"Uh, did anything ever strike you as odd about Jenny?" Reid asked
"You know what? When she moved in here 2 months ago, she walked up and down those stairs a hundred times. She wouldn't use the elevator" The Landlord explained.
"I don't blame her" Morgan commented.
"Ok, so we know Jenny didn't like tight spaces or the elevator. What else do we know?" Morgan asked.
"We know that he preys on people that are new to the city with no strong social ties" Reid stated.
"And Jenny fits the model. She's an easy target" Morgan added.
"And he's betting that she won't be missed" Hotch finished.
….
"We have been over the details of this case so many times, I could recite it in my sleep" Lilith said to JJ as she paced in front of the board back at the local station.
"Nothing like being prepared" JJ commented dryly.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I just spoke to Jenny Wittman's family" Bill said walking into the room.
"Did they give you any insights?" Lilith asked hopefully.
"Well, they weren't what you'd call close-knit. It was like she wanted a fresh start. Struck out on her own" Bill explained.
"Yeah, Garcia couldn't come up with any connection between the victims. Different socioeconomic backgrounds, levels of education, and areas of work" Lilith explained.
"But they all had relocated to Portland without any family or friends- one divorced, the rest single" JJ added.
"They did have that in common. New to the city, and they all lived alone" Lilith finished.
"That'd describe me to a T. I transferred to this field office a month ago. I'm 30, single, and don't have much of a social life since I work so much" Bill explained making Lilith chuckle slightly.
"Well, I need to go over whatever evidence you found at the other victims' homes, and then I would love to pick your brain about how you got settled into the city" JJ explained.
"Absolutely. So this guy... he burns 'em, hangs 'em, smothers 'em. Why does he kill so many different ways?" Bill asked looking at the crime scene photos.
"That's exactly what we're trying to find out" Lilith said softly before continuing her research while JJ and Bill went and talked.
"So what was the first thing you did when you moved here?" JJ asked
"I found the best coffee in town, then moved within walking distance" Bill joked seriously as JJ wrote on the whiteboard.
"Ok, so you got established got comfortable in your surroundings..." JJ said.
"Joined a gym" Bill added.
"All right. Ok. So where else is there…" JJ said trailing off.
"Doctor, dentist, dry cleaner. You think he goes to these places to find his victims?" Bill asked.
"Maybe" JJ said unsure.
"There's something around every corner" Bill muttered.
"Well, we only have to canvass 4 neighbourhoods" JJ said trying to remain upbeat before the rest of the team got back to the station.
"Lilith, follow me for a second" Reid asked Lilith once he got back and they walked into a private room.
"What's wrong?" Lilith asked worried as Reid pulled her in for a hug quickly before separating to keep a professional look about them.
"Morgan and I got stuck in an elevator and I honestly thought I was going to die. All I could think about was you so I just… I just needed a hug" Reid admitted slightly embarrassed. Lilith smiled fondly and grabbed his hand giving it a quick squeeze before Hotch opened the door and she dropped his hand. Not out of shame or fear of being found out but because they were at work and needed to keep a professional look about them.
"It's time to give the profile" Hotch said giving Lilith and Reid a knowing look.
"Ok, we know this guy used wildwood trail as his personal graveyard for 6 months. That site's been blown for him now, which means that he's been forced to change part of his M.O" Morgan said as the team stood in front of the local agents.
"Which won't be easy for somebody who thrives on being in control. The reason that he's gotten away with these first 3 murders is that he's been meticulous at every stage, from how he chooses his victims to their torture and their burial" Hotch explained.
"To us, his victims appear to be nonspecific. Other than being new to Portland, all they seem to have shared was a torturous death" Lilith stated.
"But you think the unsub chooses them for another reason, too?" Bill asked as he took notes.
"We think so" Lilith said nodding.
"The tortures lack a sexual component, which is incredibly rare. I think it's more about, uh, not necessarily about exerting power, but more like overcompensating for a lack of it" Reid added.
"This guy craves control. He's coming from a place of weakness, trying to demonstrate strength. Now we see this a lot in unsubs who've have been abused" Morgan continued.
"The lack of sexual assault could be as simple as the fact that he's impotent, something that he's trying to hide" Hotch said.
"A man this obsessed with control most likely feels powerless in his everyday life. So, he would crave stability, security. He's most likely married. If he is impotent, he could keep up appearances by adopting children" Lilith explained.
"Yeah, and someone this methodical has every moment planned. If he is captured, he'd most likely take his own life rather than give up any sort of control" Reid added.
"The victims' lack of defensive wounds suggest that they willingly put themselves in danger. So someone of authority or otherwise easily trusted put them up to this" Morgan explained.
"Also, the victims' families were led to believe their loved ones were alive and well through e-mails written by this murderer" Lilith added.
"He's calculating, and he's intelligent, and... we're going to have to do something that he's not expecting" Hotch explained.
"Like what?" Bill asked.
"Like warn his potential victims" Hotch stated simply before JJ walked back into the room silently telling Hotch that the press release had been set up. The team watched as JJ expertly stood on the stage and spoke.
"We found the remains of 4 victims in wildwood trail. 2 women, 2 men, all in their 20s, all transplants to Portland. Because the victims have this in common, we are confident that the person We're looking for latches on to people new to the city. He chooses them because they make for easier targets. If you are young and new to Portland, or if you know someone that is, please call the number on your screen for more detailed information about how to stay out of a dangerous situation" JJ said before the team left her to continue her press conference and they started to get calls from the hotline.
"Ma'am, you're saying your tenant Patrick Walker, 28, moved to Portland for grad school, and he's been missing for how long?" Lilith asked on the hotline.
"Since this morning. I know that that sounds crazy, but Patrick sticks to a routine. I tease him that he's more predictable than I am. Jogs while I'm watching the morning shows, walks to class with his backpack after that. He-he's always home for lunch. That's when he walks Lucy" The landlady said worried.
"You're in his apartment right now. Does anything look out of the ordinary? Is his backpack there still?" Lilith asked trying to help the lady out.
"Yes" The landlady said quickly.
"Ok. Then we know he's not at class" Lilith said writing the name down.
"Why would he just leave like this?" The Landlady cried.
"I don't know" Lilith said softly but she was worried he was the next victim.
….