Author's Note: I suck, I know! I haven't updated this in a long time and I keep making A/N apologies, which must get really annoying! Sorry again. I'll get better. Eventually...

Chapter 17

When everyone had left for the morgue, Garcia had stayed at her computers. Indeed, she had been there since the group meeting last afternoon. Septima had showed her some of the areas that the students like to go to, including the souvenir shop that acted as a gateway to the magical shopping world. Garcia obviously couldn't find a security camera inside there, but she had located two from shops on either side, giving her a view of the shop. After she had sourced cameras for all the locations, she had gone through tapes from a day before Ambers death right up until yesterday, after the discovery of Lucy Whithers.

It was Amber that she found first, the video showing her on the morning of her murder. She was walking towards the souvenir shop, her face appearing relaxed, although the image was somewhat pixelated. Off her arm was swinging the same pink bag that had been strewn across her mangled body. Garcia shivered. Did the girl have any idea of what was to come? She looked blissfully unaware, a child walking to town, that bag almost mocking every step she took. It was this part of the job that Garcia hated; watching the victims as they lived, knowing they wouldn't last, wanting to help, wanting to stop what had already happened. She wished she could reach in and rearrange the situation. Garcia sighed, fast forwarding through the footage. Sometimes her caring heart was a disadvantage.

It was about three minutes later that Lucy Whithers appeared on her screen, walking into the souvenir shop, not so long after Amber had. Garcia leaned a little closer, praying for a miracle. And then, lo and behold, the mystery woman walked in. All three stayed for a little long than an hour and then, at random intervals, they walked out of the souvenir shop, Lucy, the woman and finally Amber. Garcia paused the video in excitement; this couldn't be a coincidence. The moment that Hotch walked through the door, she stood up and ran over to him as fast as her heels allowed.

"Sir, I think I've found something," she said.

She led him and the rest of the group to the computers.

"I've found Amber entering into the souvenir shop on the morning of the day she was murdered," Garcia explained, "Lucy and the woman too. This might not be significant, as it is the main entrance to the magical district and, hey, everyone loves to shop, but they all enter within minutes of each other, stay for around an hour and then leave. It feels like too much of a coincidence for it to actually be one."

Hotch nodded.

"I agree. We'll definitely have to find out where they were going. The woman could've been watching the victims for her partner."

"Do we know who she is then?" Garcia asked.

Hotch shook his head and then explained, to the best of his ability, the happenings at the morgue. Garcia seemed less thrilled about the break through and more excited about the fact that wizards could turn into animals at will.

"That is so cool!" she gushed, "I would totally be a bird. Or a dolphin. Maybe a lemur!"

"Before you become an entire zoo," Hotch interrupted, "could we try to solve this case?"

"Sorry, sir," Garcia said, sitting down, "I'll be professional."

Reid stepped forward.

"How far back have you looked?" he asked, "I'd check back a few weeks or more, to see if any patterns emerge."

They watched as Garcia sped backward through time, running through days in a matter of minutes. After a while, Reid pointed at the screen.

"There," he said.

The woman had gone into the shop, as had Amber and Lucy. Garcia kept rolling back, a smile forming on her face.

"You are good, Kid Genius," she said, "It seems that every first Sunday of the month, all three women go to the magical district at the same time and leave at the same time. It's like clockwork."

"So we can assume they're meeting, or at least attending the same event," JJ chimed in, "but where and why?"

Hotch turned to look at the two Salem staff that stood there, Indira and Robert.

"Do you know where they were going?" he asked.

Robert shook his head.

"Most people go out on a Sunday. It wouldn't have been noted as suspicious."

Indira also shook her head, but it was less sure than her colleague's. Her eyes were focused on Garcia's computer screen, where the image of the unknown woman was frozen. Suddenly she let out a gasp and clutched at Robert's arm.

"I know where I've seen her," Indira whispered, "Do you remember that reporter?"

Robert's eyes lit up with understanding.

"Of course," he said.

"Reporter?" Hotch asked quickly.

"She said she was a reporter," Robert explained, "She came around here the other day, claiming she was doing a report on modern teaching methods. We sent her away. At the Institute, we value the privacy of our students and staff."

He seemed to reconsider that statement, perhaps thinking of recent events.

"Well, most of the time," he added.

"Do you remember her name?"

"Mary, I think," Indira said, "Mary Holden. She said she worked for the Spell Caster Chronicles. That's our local newspaper."

"So this journalist decided to make the news," Morgan said skeptically.

"Or it's a cover," Hotch nodded, "Either way, we should go and check out the newspaper. They'll be able to confirm the story."

"Or deny it."

It was decided that a group would be sent right away to interview the staff at the Spell Caster Chronicles. Indira offered to be the magical guide. JJ was to go with her. Hotch and Robert were organizing an interview with Lucy's widower. All in all, everybody thought they had made progress and for the first time, things were looking up. They went to their tasks with a renewed sense of purpose, hoping the day's blessings would not be over yet.