Made for Crime // Aaron Hotchner

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"I should have been there to help her"

"Amber and I were friends since the third grade, always inseparable"

"She got into San Diego Coastal first."

"I was so pissed," the victim's friend said.

She was young and looked like she was in her early twenties. She had blond hair and looked like she hadn't brushed it this morning, almost like she couldn't bring herself to look in the mirror. Her name, Michelle, fitted her description, she looked like every blond girl you see in college.

She looked absolutely distraught. It was like she blamed herself for her friend's death, but she knew she couldn't have stopped it, even if she wanted to.

"I didn't talk to her for a week. And then two days later my acceptance letter came in the mail"

"It's okay, Michelle" Agent Seaver empathized with the friend. Seaver's eyes showed sympathy, but her actions showed judgment. 

Were not supposed to show any judgment to the victim's friends or family in any way, She knew this, but I guess she couldn't mask her actions good enough.

Nevertheless, the friend noticed this judgment radiating off Seaver, and tried to defend and somehow explain her actions.

"It's not that I wasn't happy for her, I just wanted to go too. "the friend defended. 

"I know. It's a completely normal reaction" I responded back to the friend and tried to calm her down so she does not freak out on us.

"But you need to think, had any new people come into her life recently"? Seaver says while trying to hold the friend's hands.

Michell leaned back, away from Seaver.

"Not that I know of, I had to twist her arm to get her out"

"So she wasn't into the college scene?" I ask, questioning who the hell wouldn't take advantage of not having their parents on their neck.

"She could party with the best of them. She just worked her ass off."

That made more sense. Not having daddy's money and having to pay for your own actions can make you very antisocial.

"Academically or for money?"

"Money. If it wasn't dog-walking at 10 bucks an hour, it was house-sitting or proofreading. She kept busy"

Just what I expected.

"So, she took on a lot of odd jobs" I reply, taking as many notes as I can.

"She wasn't a rich kid from Orange County"

"Do you know where she hears about the part-time work?"

"Coffeehouse, craigslist, the student center. You name it"

"Thank you," Seaver says, standing up from her seat.

X

Why would one unsub go after someone who is just trying to make ends meet? Is he going after her because he knows her, or because of one of her jobs?

Walking into a room in the San Diego office, I see the whole team sitting around a table, talking about the case.

"How did it go?" Hotch asks Seaver, straight up ignoring me. Without waiting for Seaver to answer I do it for her.

"According to her rommie, Amber worked odd jobs to make ends meet" I reply to Hotch, trying to mask the bitterness in my voice.

He looks back at me before talking to Penelope on the phone.

"Garcia, get us a list of jobs Amber worked the last few months, and see if any of those matches with the other victims"

Everyone starts coming with suggestions or profiles of the unsubs, but I can't focus. There is something about this case that seems familiar, but I can't put my finger on it. As I'm stuck in my own mind, I hear the dialog between the agents.

"The UnSub stalks his victims. He knows their routine. He could attack them anytime they're alone, even in their cars, but he chooses to attack them in their homes" Rossi says

"And waits for them to bolt the doors before he strikes. He wants them to feel safe before he takes that away from them" Derek continues

"It's about making them feel powerless in their own personal space." Reid ads.

"You ok" I snap back into reality and see Derek hovering above me with a worried expression.

"Yeah, I just feel like this case reminds me of something," I say while standing up from my chair and putting one of my hands on the table in Infront of me while rubbing my forehead with the other one.

"At this job, everything starts to look the same if you work here long enough." Looking at Derek I see his empathetic expressions. I feel like he knows I'm hiding something about myself, but he is respecting my privacy and not trying to pressure me into telling him what it is. He is just waiting for me to be ready to tell him on my account.

Looking up from Derek, I see Hotch staring at me with a sour but curious expression. Instead of giving him the satisfaction of keeping eye contact, I break it and start walking.

"I guess your right," I say back to Derek while feeling his hand on my lower back, leading me out of the room.

"I'm always right" He grinned and winked, making me laugh.

Little did I know, he never stopped looking at me.