Chapter Text
“We have a case.”
There were various groans heard, mainly from Prentiss and Morgan. Once they were settled in the debriefing room, Garcia began detailing the murders.
“Okay, this one’s a doozy. In California, there have been 6 recent missing persons who were found dead. All were students from CalTech, although it seems that’s pretty much all they have in common. Except for their majors and when they were abducted.
“Victim 1. A Jessica Stanford, 25, White. She was in the process of getting her Master’s in Biochem. 17 hours after she was reported missing, she was found 19 miles away from her dorm. Coroner reported cause of death as stabbing. There are a bunch of sign of torture and overkill. No signs of sexual assault.
“Vitcim 2. Adam Levie, 23, African-American. He was getting his Bachelor’s in Mathematics. Again, 18 hours after he was reported, he was found. And again, 20 miles away from campus. Same cause of death as Jessica, except for the overkill. Still no signs of sexual assault.
“Victim 3. Kaydyn Jacobs, 27, Asain. He was in the PhD program for Engineering. And this meanie stuck to his schedule, 17 hours after he was reported missing, he was found 20 miles away from campus. And cause of death was stabbing with a whole bunch of nasty stuff that you can read. He had the same torture done to him as Jessica.
“Vitcim 4. Kelsea Smith, 26, Native American. She was in the process of getting her Master’s for Chemistry. A cookie for whoever can guess how long she was found after she was reported missing.”
Morgan rubbed his temples, “Let me guess, 17 hours.”
Garcia’s mouth formed a straight line, “Yup, and the exact same cause of death as the other three, with no overkill. And again, found 19 miles from campus.
“Vitcim 5. Vita Patil, 22, South Asain. She was just starting her Master’s in Microbiology. 19 hours after she was reported missing, she was found 20 miles from her on-campus apartment. Same MO as the previous four. No overkill.
“And victim 6. Violet Rodriquez, 24, Latina. She was getting her Master’s in Mechanical Engineering. 18 hours after she was reported missing, she was found 20 miles from campus. Same death as the others with no overkill.”
“Garcia, you said that they also had their time of abduction in common?” Prentiss forwned, her eyebrows furrowing.
“Yes. Not only their time of abduction, but the places they were taken from as well. Victims 2 and 3 were both abducted from cafes on campus at around noon each time. The cameras showed they were definitely taken forcefully, but couldn’t catch a vehicle or attacker.
“Vitcims 5 and 6 were taken from diners around the same time frame as 2 and 4. Again cameras caught them being kidnapped, but not an attacker or vehicle.
“And victims 1 and 3 were taken from the same place. The Millville Restaraunt, same time frame as the other four. Cameras didn’t catch anyone or a suspicious vehicle. And they were also the most beat up.”
“So all of these college students, ranging from 22 to 27, all majoring in STEM, but why would someone take them specifically? And how were they not seen?” Rossi’s confusion was mirrored around the table.
“We’ll continue to debrief on the plane. Wheels up in 30.” And at Hotch’s signal, they all got up to make sure they were ready for yet another case.
But this case would be slightly different.
***
“Spence, can you get table 7? I’m drowning.”
“Sure, but you owe me.”
“Whatever, genius boy, I’ll cook you dinner tonight instead of you eating more disgusting ramen.”
***
“So, got some information on the area, baby girl?”
“Well, Chocolate Thunder, besides CalTech being my alma mater before I dropped out, it is a breeding ground for geniuses.
“Umm, beside some hiking trails around campus, it’s mainly dry desert. But the stuff that is wooded seems to be pretty dense. Including the dump-site.
“So it’d take someone familiar with the area. Maybe a park ranger or something?” Prentiss suggested.
“Maybe. With both Adam Levie and Kaydyn Jacobs being athletic the Unsub would need to be physically fit,” Rossi gesticulated.
“But why wouldn’t the Unsub just take them while they were out hiking? And why these people? It’d make more sense than to take them from populated areas with surveillance, especially after the police really cracked down after the fourth victim,” Prentiss leaned in slightly.
“Were there any tracks near the dumping sites, Garcia? Or anything that would hint towards the vehicle that there were taken in?” Hotch pitched in.
“That’s just the thing. It’s almost like this guy was murdering around the weather. Right after the suspected time of dumping, there was a bunch of rain, so any tracks would be long gone,” Garcia’s voice sounded frustrated and slightly strained.
“So is the time of dumping a forensic countermeasure or a ritual?” Morgan’s stress lines were prominent.
“Garcia, when is the next rainshower?” Hotch once again took the lead.
There were a few rapid clicks of a keyboard heard, “Not in the next couple days, Bossman.”
Prentiss sighed once more, “Well, let’s hope it stays like that.”
After a few minutes of silence Hotch sighed, “Alright, Morgan, go to the morgue and talk to the coroner. Prentiss, Dave, go to the disposal sight. JJ and I will go to the station to set up. JJ, you’ll also be starting with the families. The Stanfords, Jacobses, and Levies will be there when we arrive.
***
“Hey there, welcome to Millville Cafe, my name’s Spencer and I’ll be your server today. What can I get you started on?” A soft voice brought a middle-aged man out of his stupor.
Him. With his soft, curly hair. With his beautiful hazel eyes. With his astounding brain. Soon. Soon he would be his. And no one else would ever get to take advantage of him.
Either way, the older man grinned, “Yeah, can I get a sweet tea?”
He smiled. His smile could lightup a whole room. No one else should ever be able to see such a masterpiece.
“Alright, I’ll be right back with that.”
***
The California police office was nice. Not as nice as Quantico, of course, but the team was given a large conference room with a few large boards, so better than some places.
Once everyone was back, they started.
“What did you get out of the coroner, Morgan?” Hotch, as a typical Alpha male, started first.
“Basically everything we already knew. Nothing on tox so the Unsub must be pretty fit to lift up to 160 pounds of dead weight, even with a vehicle, and take the victims. But, the coroner also said that Kaydyn Jacobs was castrated. Jessica Stanford was also genitally mutilated. The others had nothing like that, no signs of sexual assault or even any semen.”
Prentiss was the next to respond, “Yeah, that pretty much reads as a male Unsub. The disposal area was very secluded, you had to know the area well, too.”
“But why not just dispose of the bodies in one place? I don’t think it’s the dump site that’s important to him. I think it’s either the victims, the act, or both,” JJ asked.
“Alright. What’s common in Vitcimology?”
Morgan was the first to respond with, “All were students at CalTech in their 20s. All were taken from cafes or restaurants.”
“Well, yeah,” Emily sighed, “but there has to be more. These were high-risk victims in areas where the Unsub could have easily been seen. Maybe it has something to deal with the rain theory.”
“Could they be victims of opportunity? Maybe that’s why we can’t find common Victimology?” Rossi piped in.
Garcia called in suddenly, “Hotch, I just checked the forecast. A brief rainshower is expected tomorrow, and it’s going to go right over the dumping site.”
Hotch responded, “Alright, thank you, Garcia. Be on the lookout for missing persons reports soon.”
“No problem, Bossman. I await your call for my expertise.”
Rossi suddenly sat up after the converstaion ended with a beep, “I think the Millville has some sort of emotional significance to the Unsub. And something about Jessica Stanford and Kaydyn Jacobs is rubbing me the wrong way. Why were they the only ones with overkill? And he burned their hands. He didn’t do that with the others.”
“Maybe they did something that enraged him,” Prentiss suggested.
Hotch stared at the board, “But what did they do to deserve that.”