Chapter 4

*Fast forward 1 month*

I’d finally started to get a grip on my job. Nothing big had come up yet—mostly just answering questions and sending email consultations—but the team hadn’t received a case to dive into. It was a Saturday, and I was comfortably tucked into the couch, rewatching the Toy Story movies. I was halfway through Toy Story 2 when, suddenly, my phone rang, breaking the quiet.

“Y/N L/N.”

“Hello, my little dove I know you are enjoying your weekend, but unfortunately, we have a case,” Penelope said with a sad tone. I’d never heard Garcia sound like this before. Whatever the case is, it must be bad. “Come on into the BAU and then you will head to the jet.”

“Thanks, Garcia.” I packed my go bag, grabbed my gun, and headed toward my car. The drive to work wasn’t too bad—about 30 minutes, but with the way I drive, it takes 20. I pull into my designated spot, and I see Rossi get out of his car.

“Nice ride, Rossi,” I said, leaning in slightly to get a better look at the sleek, vintage Camaro. “That thing’s a beauty. They don’t make cars like that anymore.”

Rossi glanced over at my car with a smirk before looking back at me. “Yeah, well, it’s got character. Not sure that fancy European thing you’re driving has that. Looks shiny, but it’s all style and no substance.”

I raised an eyebrow, trying not to laugh. “Ouch, Rossi. I think my Audi could outrun your Camaro, but I get it—some people like the classics.”

He shrugged, still grinning. “Speed’s not everything. This car’s got history. Yours? Well, it’s just got a nice paint job and a nice sound system.” I laugh it off, but in reality, it lowkey hurt. We walk into the elevators, and he looks at me. “You ready for your first case kid?”

“Is it bad that I am a little excited.” I said looking at the ground scared of his response.

“Not at all. Excitement means you’re ready to dive in. But remember—confidence, not cockiness. You’ve got the training, the smarts, and the right instincts. Now it’s just about trusting yourself. You’re here for a reason, and that reason is that you’re damn good at what you do.”

We walk out of the elevators and up to the conference room. Everyone was there except Hotch. We waited 5 more minutes and then he arrived.

“Go ahead, Garcia.”

Penelope stood up, adjusting her glasses and flipping through her slides. “All right, people, we got ourselves a messy one,” she began, her usual energy toned down but still sharp. “5 days ago, the Yamada family went missing from their home in Kansas City, Kansas. A road crew found the family. Uh, they were tipped off to the location by a drifter who is now m.i.a. The son is still missing, but the father had gunshot residue on his hands.”

“Sounds like a murder-suicide. Why do it in the middle of nowhere?” I chimed in.

We continued theorizing what had happened. Hotch’s phone rang, as he answered, we sat looking over what the police had on the family. Hotch enters back into the room with the same demeanor as he always had.

“Another family, the Acklins, have just disappeared from, uh, Lenexa, which is a suburb of Kansas City. The same family dynamic as the Yamadas. Wheels up in 30.”

We arrived at the jet; I was in awe of how big the cabin was. Hotch, Rossi, Reid, and JJ took the 4 chairs with the table, while Prentiss and I sat on the couch, and Morgan sat on the table next to me. Garcia dug through the Acklins records and we went over what she had found, we tried to compare the two families.

There were three blacked-out Suburbans waiting in the hangar. Morgan and I drove together to the station. We entered the Kansas City police department. The lead detective greets us and sets us up in their conference room with all of the case material prepared.

“Ok, JJ, Prentiss, and I will talk to the family. Morgan and Rossi head to the Acklin house, and L/N and Reid head to the Yomada house.” Hotch said.

We dispersed, and I drove myself and Reid to the Yomada house. We made our way up to the Yomada boy’s room and searched thoroughly, trying to find clues. Spence found the window open based on the paint chips on the floor. We came up with a theory of what happened that night and went to another room. We got a call from Hotch to head back to the station.

As soon as we got back, the detective told us that they had found the Yamada boy near a construction site.My mind was spinning, too many possibilities racing through my head at once. I couldn’t latch onto a single hypothesis long enough to make sense of it. I needed a break, some space to clear my head.

Without saying anything, I stepped outside, making my way toward the back alley. I pulled out a cigarette and lit it, inhaling deeply, trying to focus on something other than the chaos swirling in my thoughts. The cool evening air didn’t help; it only seemed to intensify the frustration gnawing at me. I heard footsteps approach and turned to see JJ standing behind me. She wasn’t one for pushing me when I needed space, but I knew she could tell something was off.

“Mind if I join you?” she asked, voice calm but understanding.

I shrugged, taking another drag. “Go ahead.”

She leaned against the wall next to me, giving me a moment of quiet before speaking. “You’re thinking about the case.”

I let out a breath, the smoke rising in lazy tendrils. “Yeah. Nothing makes sense. The Yamada boy being found, the lack of any obvious connection between the families… it’s just… off. I can’t figure it out.”

JJ’s gaze softened, and she tilted her head slightly. “This is your first case, Y/N. You don’t have to have all the answers right away.”

Her words hung in the air for a second, grounding me in the present. She was right—I didn’t need to figure it all out on the first day. But that didn’t stop the pressure building in my chest.

I exhaled a long stream of smoke, staring out at the dark street ahead. “I know. It’s just… I thought it would feel different. I thought I’d have a better sense of what to do by now.”

She offered a small smile, that steady, unwavering look she always had when she knew how to get through to me. “It’s your first case. You’ll figure it out. One step at a time.”

I nodded, feeling a little lighter. We headed back in, and I immediately started digging into the Acklin girl’s social media. Garcia calls and says that someone was stalking both the Acklins and the Yamada’s socials. The detective comes back in and tells us that they had picked up the drifter who found the Yomadas and that they’re bringing him in. They ran the drifter through Vicap and he was suspected of robbing and killing a couple. We finally made progress and I felt so relieved.

Hotch looks over at me and says “Y/N and Morgan you take the interrogation when he gets here.”

We interviewed the drifter, and I could tell that he was maybe schizophrenic. His hands shook, he couldn’t answer a question with a direct answer, he was all over the place. We ended the interview with the conclusion that he did not commit the murders, he just seemed to sporadic, the unsub is too calculated and organized.

We gave the profile to the department, describing how the unsub is a family annihilator and how he is obsessed with how the families projected the appearance of perfection. I looked over the map of Kansas City and put together an evidence board, trying to narrow down where the unsub may be. Everyone was getting tired so we all headed to the hotel, thankfully we all were able to get separate rooms.

The next morning, we gathered around the evidence board again, coffee cups in hand, the lack of sleep still visible on our faces. The weight of the case was beginning to feel heavier, and I knew we needed to break it soon, before the unsub could strike again.

“We’ve got something,” Hotch said, pulling up the file on the Acklin family. “The Acklin daughter’s boyfriend is a known drug dealer, and we’ve got a possible link. He’s got connections to several of the victims.”

Rossi and JJ exchanged a look before heading out to talk to him. The rest of us continued digging into the families, looking for any connection or motive we might’ve missed. “If the boyfriend’s involved, we need to know how deep this goes,” I said, turning to Reid. “Let’s see what we can find on the other victims. There has to be something that ties them all together.”

The detective walked in. “We found the Acklin boy’s tutor,” he said, his voice tight with urgency. “She’s dead. Found on the highway. No obvious signs of trauma, but we’re waiting on the M.E.’s report.”

I felt a chill. This wasn’t a coincidence—this was escalating. Hotch immediately turned to us. “Reid, Y/N, you’re heading to the M.E.’s office. See what you can find out about the body. I’ll call Rossi and JJ.”

I nodded, already grabbing my things. “Got it.”

Hotch re-interviewed the Acklin brothers. The tutor, Vanessa, and the father of the Acklin family, Mike, were having an affair. We put together that the unsub was angry at the families and made them pay the price for their mistakes. Rossi and Morgan head back to the Acklin house while Reid and I go to the Yamadas.

Reid crouched down by the couch, his eyes scanning the floor. A moment later, he stood up, holding a crumpled receipt. “Found something,” he said, handing it to me. “It’s for a parlay. Looks like the father was making bets and gambling with the family savings.”

Before I could process that, my phone rang. It was Morgan. “Y/N, quick question—are the Acklin couple sleeping in separate beds?”

I flipped through the files we had on them, thinking back to the crime scene. “Yeah, they were. Why?”

“Check the lighting fixture. Look closely,” Morgan instructed, and the line went dead.

Reid and I exchanged a look, heading toward the light in the living room. I lifted the cover of the fixture, scanning it carefully. That’s when I saw it—a tiny, hidden security camera, so well camouflaged that it would’ve been impossible to find unless you were specifically looking for it.

“Holy shit,” I muttered. “This is it. This is the break we needed.”