White Lies ✓

4 - 800 Degrees

Spencer groaned quietly to himself, earning a dirty look from Prentiss. "Come on," He said quickly, "Let's get going."

Waving goodbye to the rest of the team, you climbed into the driver's seat of the black SUV, waiting for Spencer to join you before starting the car and driving off. He directed you to the movie theatre, which was located almost smack in the middle of town. The small town around you was a new environment. You and Spencer had both grown up in a big city, and the type of community built in a place like this trumped the sense of loneliness found in such a big city.

"So." You started, trying to break the tension. "What did you do after leaving Vegas? Last I heard you were kicking ass at Caltech."

Spencer shrugged nonchalantly. "I got three PhDs and three Bachelor's degrees before the FBI scouted me out two years ago."

"Are you serious?" You turned to look at him. "Six degrees?"

He shrugged again. "I had a lot of time on my hands. What about you? You stayed in Vegas, right?

"Yeah, after you jacked all the funding for the geniuses with mommy issues, the only place that could give me a big enough scholarship was UN, and my mom would have rathered if I'd stayed close to home anyways." Spencer glared at you from the passenger seat, you rolled your eyes. "Come on, I'm kidding. Kind of."

"Turn here." He said coldly.

As you rounded the corner, the burned-out shell of the movie theatre came into view. You gasped quietly to yourself as Spencer pointed out a parking spot. "This guy left us nothing to work with."

"One of the good things about being an arsonist is you can get rid of the whole crime scene when you're done."

"Good thing? Pretty sure that's a bad thing Doctor." You said as you stepped out of the car.

"You know what I mean." He said, following you to the front of the theatre.

You ignored him and walked over to the officer standing in the doorway. "Hello, I'm Special Agent Y/L/N, this is Dr. Reid. We're with the FBI."

The officer nodded and shook your hand, reaching for Spencer's as well. He was met with a small wave instead. "I'm Chief Shultz, I assume you've already accustomed yourself with the case." You nodded and he continued speaking. "Most of the victims died of smoke inhalation, a few were trampled. The fire was started with gasoline and matches, he turned off the main water line. I'll leave you two to look around."

The chief walked off, leaving you and Spencer alone in the burnt-out theatre.

"What are you thinking?" You asked as you watched Spencer move around the room. You'd noticed the telltale sign of Spencer deep in thought, the little crease between his eyebrows.

"The way the fire was lit, it seems like the unsub knew that even if the firefighters got here in time, the victims couldn't be saved. If you look over here," Spencer led you to the back exit. "We can tell this fire was set first, but it was small, not strong enough to draw any attention. He had the time to chain this door from the outside, walk all the way around the theatre, set the larger fire, and chain the front doors." Spencer's foot was tapping nervously against the floor.

You nodded, catching Spencer's drift. "So, he probably blends in right? In a town like this, he's gotta be middle class, white, maybe twenty to thirty?" You estimated. "He knew what he was doing, The bigger fire drove the victims to the back exit, where the smoke from the smaller fire had already been collecting."

"I'll be right back," Spencer said suddenly. "I've got to go to the restroom." He walked off quickly, leaving you confused.

As you waited for him to return, you found Chief Shultz and asked him a few more questions. By the time Spencer found you again, you'd finished at the scene and were waiting at the car. Ignoring you standing by the hood, he strode past you and got back in the SUV. He stumbled slightly before pulling himself inside.