Emily Prentiss paced the halls of the waiting room anxiously. The antiseptic smell of the hospital was beginning to give her a headache and she knew she should sit down but that seemed like an impossible ask.
Her body needed to mirror her restless mind.
The FBI agent was about to start biting her nails, an old habit that arose when she was stressed, but she caught a glimpse of the drying blood on her hands and tucked them in the crooks of her elbows instead.
The sudden ringing of Emily's cell phone caused her to jump and stop pacing. Hastily, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and answered without checking the name.
"Prentiss."
"Derek told me what happened," JJ's voice was soaked in concern but it was calming to Emily's ears. "Is she okay?"
Emily let out a breath she didn't quite realize she was holding, "I'm not sure yet, the doctors just took her away. I think she's in surgery now."
"Okay...Em...that's good, that's really good," JJ said. "Do you need anything? I can wait with you, or swing by with a change of clothes, anything you need."
Emily looked down at her blood-stained shirt that matched her blood-stained hands and shakily agreed.
"A change of clothes would be great," Emily closed her eyes. "Thanks, JJ."
"Of course," JJ replied and then paused. "And...Emily?"
Emily could only hum to show she was listening, worried her voice wasn't strong enough for the weight of words.
"It's not your fault," JJ softly told her. "You couldn't have seen this coming. You couldn't have known."
SIX MONTHS EARLIER
"No need for an overnight bag folks because this one's local, right in our home sweet home DC," Penelope Garcia said as she hustled into the BAU conference room.
Derek Morgan sighed, "Serial killer right in our backyard."
"More like a kidnapper right in our backyard," Garcia corrected. "Well, and killer too...if I may direct your attention to your tablets."
While the team pulled up the case files on their respective tablets, the tech genius pulled up a photo of a teenager who wore a sweet smile and sad eyes. With a click of a button, crime scene photos of her appeared too, depicting the teenager now with pale skin and lifeless eyes. The pictures ranged from the girl's body lying on the rocky shore of a river to close-ups of the ligature marks around her wrists.
"Earlier today, the body of fifteen-year-old Amelia Mooney was found in the Potomac River by a couple of tourists," Garcia informed the team. "Cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head but she also had multiple broken ribs and a ruptured spleen.
"She took one hell of a beating," Morgan commented.
Rossi nodded, "I remember hearing about this case. She was a foster kid who went missing from her group home here in DC, what...six months ago?"
"Seven," Garcia quickly corrected. "She had a history of running away though so there wasn't much attention and with no leads, Metropolitan PD ultimately chalked it up as a runaway case."
"It looks like she was held," Reid noted the ligature marks. "And the ME report says she suffered a plethora of injuries in addition to the broken ribs, all at different stages of healing. Some of them were even completely healed."
JJ sighed, "Also reports signs of sexual assault. This girl went through hell."
"And we need to make sure this doesn't happen again," Hotch stated. "We've already let down Amelia Mooney by her disappearance slide, we cannot do it again."
"With Amelia dead, our unsub could be looking for a replacement," Emily said. "We should let local police know to flag all missing child reports."
Rossi nodded, "We need to consider the fact that there could be more victims out there too."
"And there could be multiple unsubs," Reid added.
"We're going to work with Metropolitan PD at their station. Garcia, I want you to go through case files in DC, Virginia, and Maryland. Look for any similarities to what happened here with Amelia," Hotch told her and Garcia hurried back to her office.
The BAU leader then turned to the rest of the team.
"When we get to the station, I want JJ and Emily to re-interview staff and residents at the group home Amelia was staying in," Hotch said. "Morgan, Reid, I want you to visit the ME's office. Rossi and I will start combing through all missing child reports of teenage girls around Amelia's age."
And with that, they were gone.
When Hotch and Rossi arrived at the DC Metro police station, they were immediately greeted by an officer.
"Detective Andrews," He introduced himself. "You guys must be the FBI."
"I'm Agent Hotchner and this is Agent Rossi," Hotch shook hands with the detective.
Detective Andrews raised his eyebrows, "A mighty small team you've got here."
"Our other agents are at the ME's office or interviewing Amelia's group home," Rossi explained, "We'll need Amelia Mooney's case files and all missing child reports that are similar to Amelia's."
"Of course," Detective Andrews said showing the two agents to a secluded conference room in the station. "Your team can set up here."
Hotch and Rossi thanked the detective and began filing through the boxes of case files that already sat on the conference room table. However, they noticed a linger Detective Andrews and paused to look at him, eyebrows raised.
"We didn't know you know," the detective said sheepishly. "Amelia Mooney was always running off, we figured she jumped states this time...we didn't think she got kidnapped."
"We're not here to assign blame," Hotch responded stoically. "We're here to ensure that there aren't any more girls that are going through what Amelia went through."
Detective Andrews nodded but he raised his hand to awkwardly scratch behind his neck.
"What about the bastard who did this?"
"We're going to catch him," Rossi stated simply and turned back to the files.
At the ME's office, Morgan is beginning to feel the effects of being around a genius with an IQ of 187. While waiting for the medical examiner, the brilliant Spencer Reid is spewing facts about the Potomac River and Morgan uses every ounce of self-control to prevent himself from hitting Reid.
"What are you, reading about the Potomac on your days off?" Morgan asked through gritted teeth.
"Yes well, I actually have read about the Potomac on my days off," Reid replied. "Did you know that humans first started inhabiting the region around the Potomac River about 14,000 years ago?"
Fortunately, for Morgan's sanity and Reid's physical well-being, the medical examiner enters the room
"Apologies for the wait," She said and began flipping through her clipboard. "It's been a busy morning."
The medical examiner leads Morgan and Reid through her report. She noted that Amelia had been malnourished and the injuries indicated she had been beaten often. She also gave her professional opinion; Amelia Mooney was killed by accident.
"The bruising pattern on her face here suggests she was pistol-whipped but she wasn't shot to death," She explained. "In addition to the sexual assault, it sounds like it was a beating taken too far."
"Was there any DNA?" Reid asked.
The medical examiner nodded but reported that there were no matches to anyone in the system. She did have something interesting to say though.
"There were multiple sets of DNA actually," She told the agents, her voice expressing pain for the killed teenager.
Reid and Spencer exchanged glances. Multiple sets of DNA meant multiple unsubs.
Meanwhile, JJ and Emily were guided through the halls of Amelia's group home. Unity Group Home for Girls was a regular house in a regular neighbourhood. Upon their arrival, JJ and Emily were introduced to Samantha Jones who ran the home.
"How many girls live here Ms. Jones?" Emily questioned as they were led into the common area on the first floor.
"Please, call me Sam," Ms. Jones insisted. "Currently we house eight girls."
JJ nodded, "Have any other girls besides Amelia gone missing?"
"No, we've never had any issues," Sam shook her head. "I mean, these girls get such a bad rap from the system but they're good kids. A part of me never truly believed that Amelia ran away. Sure, she took off a couple of times before but she always came back."
"Sam, we would like to talk to all your staff again, see if they remember anything new about the night Amelia went missing," JJ told the woman. "We would also like to speak with the girls."
Sam agreed, "Of course. Anything...though I will say there are only two girls here now who knew Amelia. The rest of the girls who were here when Amelia was here have left the home."
"Why did they leave?" Emily asked, her brows raising at that tidbit of information.
"Foster homes opened up and the system always prefers to have kids be placed with families instead of group homes," Sam responded. "Others were reunited with their biological families."
JJ expressed her understanding but made it clear that they still wanted to speak with the two girls who did know Amelia and Sam offered names before announcing that she would bring one down.
During Sam's absence, JJ and Emily took the chance to carefully examine the first floor of the group home. It was clearly well taken care of with its clean walls and dusted furniture. The plump grey couch was adorned with colourful pillows and on the neighbouring armchair was a yellow wool-knit blanket.
The shelves of the TV stand were filled with books and board games. Through the open curtains, the sun danced on the coffee table, causing the wood to shimmer.
When Sam returned, she was accompanied by a frowning teenager. The girl was thin and her messy chestnut hair hung loosely past her shoulders. Her blue eyes glared at the FBI agents sitting on the couch but the freckles splattered across her nose cast an innocent aura.
"Matilda, these are Agents Jareau and Prentiss with the FBI," Sam gestured towards JJ and Emily. "They wanted to talk to you about Amelia."
Matilda gave a nod and crossed her arms. Sam gave a strained smile and gently pushed Matilda into the armchair.
"Do you want me to stay?" She offered but Matilda shook her head and JJ assured the woman they would be okay.
Perhaps part of Emily was hoping that Matilda would be more open to a conversation once Sam was out of the room but that clearly wasn't the case. The teenager was closed off and had no intention to be the first one to talk.
"Hi Matilda, I'm Agent Jareau, but you can call me JJ," JJ reintroduced herself, trying to make herself seem less intimidating. "This is my friend Emily."
Emily watched as Matilda gave them both a polite smile but noted how the girl's arms remained tightly crossed over her chest.
"Is it alright if we ask you some questions about Amelia?" Emily asked.
Matilda shrugged and her eyes flickered towards the TV, "Is she dead?"
JJ and Emily glanced at each other, slightly taken aback by Matilda's blunt question. Gently, JJ confirmed that Amelia was dead before repeating Emily's original question.
Matilda shrugged again but she nodded so the agents took that as a sign to continue.
"Could you walk us through the night Amelia disappeared?" JJ requested. "Anything you can remember could help us."
"Why? I already told the cops when Amelia first went missing," Matilda's glare hardened. "Plus, she's dead now. You already found her."
Emily took a deep breath, sensing that it was going to be a challenge to convince Matilda that they were there to help. She understood though. The police had initially disregarded the severity of Amelia's disappearance, unfairly judging her based on her file in the system.
If Emily were Matilda, she wouldn't be too easily convinced either.
"We want to catch whoever took Amelia and hold them accountable," Emily said. "We don't want what happened to Amelia to happen to anyone else."
"So she was taken," Matilda spoke, her voice cold.
JJ nodded, "That's what it looks like, and we want to make sure something like that doesn't happen again."
"Okay," Matilda squirmed in her seat. "What exactly do you want to know?"
"What can you tell us about Amelia?" Emily asked softly. "Were you two close?"
Matilda began chewing her bottom lip, "I mean, we lived together so I guess we were close. She was living here before I came."
"Did Amelia run away often?" JJ delicately approached the topic.
"Yeah," Matilda stiffened and her eyes flickered towards the hallway. "I heard her leave that night."
Emily leaned forward, her arms resting on her knees.
"Do you remember hearing anything?"
Matilda pursed her lips and shook her head, "No, I just heard someone going down the steps and then the door opening and closing."
"You know, sometimes closing our eyes can help us remember things we didn't remember before," JJ said. "Do you think you can give that a try?"
The teenager shrugged but closed her eyes. Her body remained tense and her arms remained crossed. Emily couldn't help but feel like Matilda was hiding something.
"So you hear someone going down the steps," JJ repeated what Matilda had told them. "Are your eyes closed or open?"
"Open," Matilda said. "It's dark but I can see the outline of Molly in her bed."
Emily furrowed her eyebrows, "Who's Molly?"
"We shared a room," Matilda replied simply. "She left a few months ago."
"Okay, so you see the outline of Molly and hear someone going down the stairs," JJ redirected Matilda back to the task at hand. "Do you hear anything else?"
Matilda shook her head, "No, not until I hear the door open and then close."
"Do you hear a car door open and close?" Emily suggested but Matilda shakes her head again.
"I can't tell...I don't think so?" Matilda scrunches her forehead as she tries to think. "I-I can't remember."
JJ reassuringly speaks up, "That's okay, it was a while ago."
As Matilda opens her eyes, Emily sees a quiver of worry in them and the FBI agent can't help but feel suspicious towards Matilda. While JJ tells Matilda that they're all done here, Emily fumbles through her pockets to pull out her card.
"Here, if you remember anything, don't hesitate to call me," Emily hands the teenager the card who quickly pockets it with a nod. "We're here to help."
Matilda nods but can't seem to meet Emily or JJ's eyes before she scurries away through the hall and up the stairs.
"What do we know?"
"Not much more than we did before," Morgan tells Hotch as he flips yet again through Amelia's case file.
Emily and JJ weren't able to get much more out of the other girl than they were with Matilda. All they had to go off of was Amelia's foster care file which only reiterated what they already knew.
Amelia Mooney was a runner. She had run away from every single placement before she was sent to live in the group home at the age of eleven. Her mother died when she was four and her father was currently serving time in prison. Emily knew that most foster care files were heartbreaking but it didn't make reading Amelia's any easier.
"Garcia, were we able to find anything on the group home?" Emily asked through the phone that was put on speaker.
"Negative," Garcia's voice responded. "They are as clean as a whistle. Outstanding home inspections. No complaints."
Hotch nodded toward Emily, "Do you suspect something?"
"I don't know," Emily replied honestly. "It's just...Sam told us that there are only two girls still there now who knew Amelia. If they had eight girls when Amelia was living there, you're telling me that six of them have left the home in seven months?"
"That number is surprising," Reid agreed. "Especially if you consider the fact that group homes mainly house foster kids who struggle to stay at placement with foster families."
JJ sat up in her seat, "And when Emily and I interviewed one of the two girls who knew Amelia, she definitely seemed like she was hiding something."
"Yeah...Matilda," Emily said and then remembered something the teenager had said. "Garcia, can you find any record of a girl named Molly staying at the group home?"
There was a momentary pause as Garcia worked her magic on her computer back at the BAU. A few clicks later and Garcia pulled up the name Molly Haas.
"Molly Haas, sixteen, resided at the group home for five years before leaving about three months ago," Garcia reported. "She now lives with her aunt and uncle in Maryland."
"Can you tell us what happened to all the residents who left the group home within the past year?" Rossi asked.
Garcia's fingers immediately began flying on the keyboard, the clicking audible through the phone.
"You shall ask and I shall bring," Garcia said. "Okay, I have thirteen names. All of them were properly filed through the system and they're all legit reasons. We have a couple of instances of reunification with biological parents, some left DC to live with family, and some were placed with foster families."
"The group home seemed genuine," JJ brought up the clean interior and friendly environment. "Nothing stands out in the records."
Hotch glanced at the clock on the wall, "It's getting late but I want to bring Matilda in tomorrow for some more questioning. If she's hiding something, we need to know what it is and why she would keep it from us."
He sent the team home and everyone began wrapping things up for the night. As Emily cleared off the table of case files, she felt her thoughts drifting towards the teenager they met earlier with the cold attitude.
"Is everything okay?" JJ stopped by Emily on her way out of the station. "You look a little lost in thought."
Emily chuckled, "Yeah, everything's fine. I'll see you tomorrow JJ."
JJ knew that was a lie but she also knew how stubborn Emily Prentiss could be. The blond let this one slide with a comforting smile and a "Have a good night".
As everyone started leaving one by one, Emily couldn't help but feel like they were barking up the wrong tree. In some ways, it felt like they were treating Matilda as a criminal in Amelia's case. Surely that couldn't be the case.
Could it?