One year later
Quantico, VA
Christina knew that today was going to be a difficult day when her boss SSA Aaron Hotchner called her at five o'clock in the morning because of a new case. Considering that Christina had finally fell asleep at one in the morning due to the fact that today was supposed to be her day off, she was not pleased. Christina wasn't the only one pissed at the early wake up. Callie Torres her girlfriend of almost a year, who had been visiting from Seattle for the weekend was grumpily woken up by her girlfriend's work phone to her displeasure. To Callie's further frustration she realized that Christina had to go into work today. Giving the frustrated woman an apologetic smile, she hung up on Gideon after promising to be in the office in an hour. "I'm so sorry honey, they need me to come in today. We have a case," Christina apologized to her grumpy lover.
Callie knew what she was getting into when she began to date Christina a year ago after their relationship started from friends with benefits to an actual relationship. Christina had visited Seattle Grace to visit her older sister Meredith Grey for a check up when she ran into her, literally. Since then, their biggest issue was time management. Callie worked at Seattle Grace Hospital as an Orthopedic Surgeon, as such she already had barely any hours left in the day to devote to her girlfriend. Hence, her weekends were reserved for her equally busy girlfriend who worked for the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit, which could get a case anytime and need to travel at a moment's notice like now. It doesn't help them that Callie has begun to have feelings for one of the interns at the hospital that she shouldn't be feeling. Not only is it frowned upon to date someone in the hospital, but there is also a power imbalance due to him being an intern.
That's right she has feelings for a man, when she was sure she was a lesbian and she knew if she leaves her girlfriend for a man, it will hurt her girlfriend even more. No doubt, Christina would feel that Callie had lied to her when she told her she was also a lesbian when they were starting this. Not to mention that it would probably batter her pride and self-worth that not only is her girlfriend leaving her, but she is leaving her for a man. Even with all of that there was one big reason not to pursue her feelings for George the intern, Christina had fell in love with her during their year together and finally worked up the courage to tell her last night. After a year together, with Callie being the only one to freely admit her feelings and patiently and impatiently waiting to hear the words. If Callie left her so soon after that it would destroy Christina and she couldn't do that to the already emotionally scarred woman.
"Callie?" Christina's worried voice broke her from her thoughts. Callie shook her head as if to rid herself of her thoughts and glanced at her girlfriend, who had left her to her thoughts to get ready for work. Christina wore dark washed jeans, a simple black belt with her badge and gun already holstered, black timberland boots, a black T-shirt with a dark jean jacket. The only jewelry she wore were her dog tags from her time in the Marine's, which she had updated to display the date she left the Marines and her Military watch on her left wrist. Christina wore no makeup besides Chapstick to protect her lips from the elements and she had her sunglasses perched on her head. Giving herself a quick spritz of her preferred perfume of Lavender and Jasmine, she was ready for work, Christina's hazel eyes glanced curiously at her silent girlfriend.
Biting her lip, Callie shook her head at her lover. "Shit, Chris! You better get going before I drag you back to bed, I won't be able to let you leave if you don't." Callie all but moaned, her worries forgotten as her eyes practically devoured her girlfriend. Christina smirked smugly at her girlfriend and while worried about what was troubling her lover, she couldn't help but preen at Callie's words. If she didn't have to pick up two of her coworkers in twenty minutes before heading to the office, she would have ignored her lover's advice and stayed just to see if Callie really would drag her back to bed. Unfortunately, she had to leave. Stalking back to the bed, Christina gave Callie a passionate kiss to reward her for her words and to be a tease. Callie moaned as Christina practically fucked her mouth with her tongue, giving the moaning Doctor a nip on her bottom lip, she smirked at Callie when she opened her hooded eyes that she didn't realize were closed in frustration that she had stopped kissing her. "Sorry baby, but as you have so kindly reminded me, I have to go," Christina chuckled at Callie's pout and grumble of being a "fucking tease. With a last peck on Callie's swollen lips, she snagged her keys and left for work with a quick bye and love you to Callie.
Getting into her black 1967 Chevy Impala, or Baby as she affectionally called her car, she sped off to the University where her colleagues were waiting for her. By the time she had arrived, SSA Gideon, one of her bosses and whom she was picking up was almost finished with his presentation. Leaning against the wall near the door, she waited for him to finish curious about what he was talking about.
"Anyone recognize these faces?" Gideon curiously asked in his usual calm steady voice, as he showed the students a series of pictures of dead bodies. The class was silent as they looked at the gruesome pictures. Christina already knew who these people were, having heard the story about the victims and crimes of this particular killer. The one the media had oh so creatively dubbed the 'Footpath Killer.' Sure, enough a brave young woman confirmed what Christina already knew, when Gideon called on her to answer.
"Victims of the Footpath Killer," The woman answered, nervously shifting in her seat when she had the eyes students who were paying attention and her instructor on her. Giving the woman a small smile of approval, her nodded to her.
"That is what the Virginia newspapers are calling him. We refer to him as the unknown subject or unsub." Gideon began to calmly pace as he spoke, his hand clasping each other as he began to tell the students the profile he gave the police, just like he does when he gives profiles at work. Christina mentally noted his mannerisms and behavior as he continued to speak.
"I told the Virginia P.D... that we were looking for a white male in his twenties...who owns an American-made truck in disrepair. Works a menial job. I told them that when you find him... don't be surprised to hear him speak with a severe stutter."
The woman next to the person who answered before raised her hand and when Gideon gave the okay, she asked skepticism in her voice and confusion on her face. "Not to sound skeptical, but come on ... a stutter?" Giving the woman an amused smirk for her skepticism, Gideon nodded and folded his arms as he spoke his next words.
"Where did the murders occur? Hiking paths. Isolated. If I'm a killer who has to use an immediate application of overpowering force, even out in the middle of nowhere, I lack confidence. I can't charm them into my car as Ted Bundy did. I can't because I am ashamed of something."
Before Gideon could continue, the door beside her opened loudly and her fellow colleague Dr. Spencer Reid had arrived. Dr. Spencer Reid was a fellow genius but nowhere near Christine's caliber. While they both are geniuses, Christine has a higher IQ, more PHD's, more experience then him and Christine is older than Spencer. Spencer on the other had has a 187 IQ compared to Christine's 225 IQ and he has Eidetic memory compared to her Photographic, unlike Christine however he can read 20,000 words per minute, while she can only read 15,000. Due to that and his age, Spencer is dubbed the baby genius of the team.
Seeing that he was interrupting Gideon's lecture but knowing that they were on a time crunch, Spencer just pointed to the file in his hand with an apologetic smile. Gideon's mouth twitched in annoyance at the interruption but gave the Agents at the door an imperceptible nod.
"Excuse me," Gideon told the class as he and Christina followed Reid out into the hallway.
"They're calling him the Seattle Strangler. Four victims in four months," Reid explained to them as Gideon went over the file. Christina leaned against the wall, staring at the file in Gideon's hands and wishing that she had a copy because she was curious. But she knew that she will have to wait for the debrief. At the mention of Seattle though, she perked up. Maybe she will have time to visit her sister and girlfriend while she is there. No doubt by the time the case is over, Callie will be back in Seattle. Gideon's voice distracted her from her thoughts about her girlfriend, not even realizing she was smiling while thinking of her.
"Allowing him to control the rate of suffocation," Gideon murmured grimly at the thought of what these poor women went through because of this bastard.
"To prolong it?" Reid questioned him, tilting his head in confusion, reminding Christina of a curious puppy. Before Gideon could reply or she could laugh at her thought about Spencer being a puppy, Christina answered him.
"To enjoy it," Christina's voice was as equally grim as Gideon's was at the thought of the type of unsub this one is.
"Seattle's hit a wall?" Gideon questioned confused, as to him it seemed obvious what type of murderer this was, so why would they be called in? The police should have enough to catch the bastard. Unfortunately, Spencer dashed his hopes and faith in the Seattle P.D.
"Physical evidence is nonexistent. There are no tangible leads," Reid replied disappointedly.
" And another girl is missing," Christina guessed, both men nodded to confirm her suspicions as they entered Gideon's office. Gideon went behind his desk to sit and go over the file a little more in order to give them the profile they needed.
"I looked the case file over, I'll get some thoughts to you ASAP," Gideon absentmindedly told the two young agents, already starting to get absorbed in the file. However, he was interrupted before he got two sentence in by an unexpected but welcome voice.
"You're going to be with us in Seattle ASAP," SSA Aaron Hotchner said as he strode into the room with SSA Derek Morgan following after him. Christina gave both men a nod and smiled at her friend Morgan. Christina crossed her ankles and arms as she leant against the wall and listened to her fellow agents talk about the case, curious about what she will be facing soon.
"Twenty-three-year-old Heather Woodland," Morgan said as he handed Gideon a picture of said girl. Nodding in thanks, he studied the picture as he listened to his colleagues continue to debrief him.
"Before she left for lunch, she downloaded an email with a time-delayed virus attached. The killer's virus wiped her hard drive and left this on the screen," Hotchner added as he handed Gideon another sheet of paper with the message. Gideon placed his reading glasses back on which he had taken off when Hotchner entered the room and read the rather baffling message that was clearly from the killer. Tilting his head as he read, he raised an eyebrow in surprise at the message, Christina was equally baffled. Spencer was confused tilting his head to the side like a puppy, Morgan and Hotchner just looked tired at the message, their confusion long since spent.
"For heaven's sake, catch me before I kill more. I cannot control myself," Gideon read incredulously.
"Since when do the killers beg the police to stop them," Christina murmured to herself in confusion, but since the office was quite everyone heard her. Glancing at the frowning woman in the corner of the room, Morgan answered her, "usually someone who wants attention, but they usually make a game or challenge of it." Christina nodded to Morgan in agreement, which is usually the case, an unsub with an ego would challenge the police to catch them for attention. But this seemed different, it reminded her of a cry for help, not a challenge.
"He never keeps them for more than seven days, which means we have fewer than thirty-six hours to find her," Hotchner informed them to their unsurprise. Considering that most abductions have twenty-four hours to live if they were lucky, having this many hours to possibly rescue her is a relief.
"They want you back in the saddle," Morgan confirmed Gideon's thoughts as to why his team was all here personally for this case. Derek crossed his arms as she stared worriedly at Gideon as he asked, "you ready?"
Spencer shrugged his tight shoulders, practically feeling the tension in the room as he awkwardly tried to relieve the tension in his own Reid-like way. "Looks like medical leave's over boss."
Gideon nodded slowly as he agreed with the young genius, he looked over each of his team members, all of them grim at the case and pulling Gideon back into this before his leave was over but they had no choice. They needed his help and insight; the team just was not the same without Gideon.
"They sure they want me?" Gideon asked in a vain hope that this was just his team trying to get him to come back, they had done that before after all. Well, Christina had, she kept visiting, calling, and texting him to return and check on him. Gideon was the closest thing to a paternal figure she had after her Grandfather Hank and Gibbs. So, it was to her relief when Hotchner confirmed her hopes and to Gideon's dismay when Hotchner spoke his suspicions.
Hotchner nodded apologetically, his eyes softening in apology and sympathy as he softly but firmly confirmed everyone's suspicions. "The order came from the Director."
Nodding in resignation, Gideon sighed as he got up from his seat, grabbing his jacket from his chair and followed the other's out of his office.
"Then we better get started."