Say It Again

Chapter 3: Roots

When we land, Reid and I hop into one of the black SUVs provided for us. I drive, and Reid fills the silence in the car with random facts about World War I until I turn the radio on. I flip through the stations looking for a good one. Country station, country station, country station. Finally, I find one that plays a nice mix of music.

"Hey Emily, do you hate country music?" Reid asks after the last notes of Bon Jovi's "Livin' On a Prayer" fade.

"It isn't my favorite, but I don't hate it. Why?"

"You skipped at least five country stations before you found this one. Plus you rolled your eyes when you got to the fifth one."

I chuckle under my breath and sing along to "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" instead of replying. Reid pulls a book out of his bag and flies through the pages for the rest of the drive.

When we finally meet with the ME, Reid notices that each of the bodies has a similar puncture wound on the right side of the neck.

"It's really small, but I'm surprised I missed it," the medical examiner says, pushing her glasses up her nose.

"Yeah, it almost looks like it was from an injection of some sort. But there were no drugs found in any of their systems, correct?" Reid asks, standing back up from where he had bent over the most recent victim's body.

"Nothing came up at all. Nothing unusual in the stomach contents, either," the ME's red hair falls across the clipboard in her hand as she double-checks her notes.

"If he isn't injecting them, what are these puncture wounds for?" I ask, turning to look at Reid.

"That's what we need to find out. Let's head to the station and tell them team what we know."

...

When we walk into the conference room half an hour later, the only ones present are Hotch and JJ. JJ smiles softly at me as I walk through the door, and I can't help but smile back.

"What did you guys find out?" Hotch asks, looking up from the papers on the table in front of him.

"Each of the three victims died from asphyxiation, as we already knew, but there was one thing we didn't notice until we arrived. There was a puncture wound on the right side of the victims' necks. It almost looks like it was from some kind of injection, but we really aren't sure what it was for because no drugs were found in their systems," Reid explains quickly.

"We need to figure out what that's for. It's definitely part of the unsub's signature, but understanding why may help us figure out who he is. Morgan and Gideon may not be back from the crime scenes for another hour or so. Reid, why don't you start working on a geographical profile. Prentiss, the families of all three victims just arrived. Will you talk to Caleb Matheson's family, JJ, you speak with Juliet Monroe's, and I'll speak with Anthony Micheals'," Hotch says as he stands up and walks out of the conference room door.

JJ stands as well, running her fingers through her hair before smoothing out the new wrinkles on her skirt. She pats Reid on the shoulder and glances toward me again before following Hotch. I glance at the whiteboard and the map taped to it. Reid is already opening a marker and drawing circles around the three dumpsites. I sigh quietly before going to meet the latest victim's family. 

                                                                                 ...

About forty-five minutes later, I walk back into the conference room and slump down into a chair. Interviewing victims' families is one of the hardest parts of this job. It always takes a lot out of me.