Only Human ༯ Spencer Reid

6.2

"Leroy Sharpe was shot with a Ruger Precision Rifle, six-point-five millimeters on Times Square in the middle of the night," Skylar recapped once they were back in the conference room, brooding over a piping hot cup of coffee. "They never did something like this before. This was public and guaranteed to attract law enforcement."

"If he was shot from a long distance, how did the burn mark end up on his chest?" Lucas asked.

"He was found minutes after he was shot because everyone thought the man was just homeless. It's possible our unsub walked by, branded him, and then left without getting noticed. This is New York, stranger things have happened."

"But they've never used a gun before."

"Well, it's an organization, so maybe they've got a new killer in their midst."

He shrugged. Spencer flipped the page to the next victim. "John Ramos was electrocuted in his pool whilst his wife was out on a visit to her father," he read. "This one seems like they're prone to counter-measures. Long-distance rifle, an electrical current in a pool where all evidence was washed away in seconds. They're careful."

"Too careful," Skylar said. "The first murders were careful too, but harsh and without any personal dedication besides the signature. Those killers were told what to do and how to do it. In this case, it seems like someone had a personal agenda, and the burning only makes it even more so. I mean, we established their need for attention, but what if this one wants something else entirely."

"You mean they want to get caught?"

"No... they want to taunt. More specifically, I think they want to taunt us because their endgame is closing in."

Her words were left in the air for the door opened and revealed Hotch with the rest of the team following suit. The three Agents rose from their chairs to greet them. Lucas introduced himself like the gentleman he was, then he stood to the side to watch the profilers go about the briefing.

Derek grabbed Skylar's coffee cup and placed his lips along the lid. "Sure, help yourself," she said, though her voice held a joking undertone. She didn't mind. And he smirked because he knew.

"Did you guys find anything interesting?" Spencer asked. The whiteboard he now stood at again was like a secret solace to be standing somewhere he had full control over. At least he knew that this was something he could do, and something that he was undoubtedly good at.

Skylar leaned on Derek's shoulder as he sat down on the round table, feet plopped in her chair so she wouldn't be able to sit. It was a subtle way of him asking to be close to her. She knew her attempt a few months back had left many scars within the team, but especially on Derek and Spencer. While she had learned how to live with the constant guilt, they had no one to tell them that it wasn't their fault. And even though she had told them a long time ago that her actions weren't in their control, they still thought that if maybe they had stayed, things would've gone differently. But they wouldn't have. Skylar had been so determined to die, she would've just found another way, and maybe succeeded in the end. If anything, they were her heroes, but they didn't know that and she didn't know how to bring it up without ripping her own stitches open.

"Well, Prentiss and I went to John Ramos's house on the upper east side," Derek said, still twirling with his friend's coffee, "but the crime scene looks like nothing happened. There was no evidence, no sign of disturbance, nada. We talked to the housekeeper, but she had off the night of the murder. And then his wife came home, so we asked her if she knew anyone who would want to do this to her husband, or if he had ever mentioned the Ace Of Hearts before if he was involved in any shady business and all that, but that woman was completely clueless."