The natural dynamic of the BAU is thrown out of balance when a new young recruit joins. Friendships form, romantic interests blossom, and a less-than-friendly competition arises.
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By the time lunch rolled around, the team had met back in the debriefing room. Everyone was updated and reading through files. The compiled list of suspicious employees in Washington DC was miles long. Garcia was in her cave, trying to find connections between Maria and Lucille, but she was just as irritated as everyone else at the list. Due to its secrecy, it wasn't anywhere on a computer. Just a copy at the top branches of security. The BAU wasn't considered essential, but Hotchner's track record and networking made him an asset to the government in general.
The room practically transformed into a hangout spot. Hotch and Rossi were discussing familiar faces by the window, Derek used one chair to sit and one as a footrest, Emily sat on the table, JJ was mindlessly stepping around, and Reid was on the ground by a growing pile of papers. You had your back holding your weight against the wall and your eyes buried in a file about some guy named Dan who was as bland as they get. No one interesting had popped out yet. Most of them were on the list due to co worker complaints and sketchy internet searches. Nothing screamed child kidnapper. You let out a heavy sigh.
"There's got to be a better way to do this." You broke the silence with an exasperated tone. Derek scoffed with a grin.
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"Yeah, you can say that again, shortstack. Even Einstein over there is struggling."
"I'm not struggling. I'm just..." Reid's voice trailed off as he failed to defend himself. An innocent smile pulled at his lips. "It's a lot of papers."
"Why would anyone hurt a child? That's what I'm stuck on. Killing the parents or even killing all of them would make more sense. There wasn't any sign of sexual abuse and Maria wasn't killed in the house, so what's the guy trying to prove?" JJ thought out loud. You couldn't imagine the type of stress she was under. Wondering about crime all day is never fun, but having to see violent crimes against kids as a mother must have been way worse. Her question remained unanswered for a couple of minutes. She pointed out a key detail in the case that somehow didn't make any sense and, even though it was frustrating to think about, it provided everyone with the opportunity to take a break from the endless files.
"What if it's not a guy?" Emily looked up. The entire room went silent for a beat. Even the two leaders turned around to hear what she had to say. "Maria was beaten, we know that, but there wasn't any blood in Lucille's room."
"Yeah, because it was a copycat. How does that make it a woman?" Derek asked.
"No blood means no violence and no violence means no resistance. That means-"
"Lucille went willingly and young girls almost always feel safe around women." You finished her sentence for her once you finally caught on. It made sense although it didn't cover everything. There was a huge piece of the puzzle you were missing.
"What about the marker on the window? Women don't usually pin crimes on others," Rossi said.
"A message, not pinning." Reid stood up with scrunched eyebrows, the look that meant he had an idea while also making your heart melt. You loved watching him present what was going on in his complicated mind. "Maria's case was never solved. The only ones who would have seen the mark were the parents or the police, but they wouldn't be angry enough to do this," He took a breath. His expression changed to wide eyes and worry lines. "Guys, what if it's Maria's mom?"
