Criminal Minds Series Rewrite: Season Three

Doubt: Part One

It's a good day.

It's a good fucking day because you are a new woman. You passed your evaluation with flying colors, your birthday had come and passed, and you got a therapist to help you overcome the trauma associated with Hannah and your past. Does a part of you wish she was still here? Yes. You know that she is doing a good job, and she's been keeping up with you periodically to tell you she is doing okay.

She is thriving, and it's not with you.

You're ready to get back to your normal life, and that includes being with and loving Spencer Reid. You two had just passed your two-year mark of dating, and you couldn't be happier about that. You have a good feeling about all of this and what better way to celebrate that than going to work and taking down the bad guys.

Someone's been murdering college students on a campus in Flagstaff, Arizona, so that's where your team is headed to now. You didn't have time to talk about it at the BAU, so you spent the entire flight talking about it. One thing you noticed about the team is that they were ready to move on and to do what they need to do for the team.

However, Gideon is completely different.

His energy is all off. He's not the same man as he was before because Frank killed the love of his life (presumably). He's more distant and distracted, and only you can see it. Maybe the other team has an inkling that Gideon isn't okay, but you know for sure he isn't. But it's not like you're going to go up to him and ask him about it. He won't tell you.

So, all you can do besides trying to be there for Gideon when he needs it is to work the case. The detective on the case is meeting you at the airport so he can escort you to the campus himself.

"Jim Griffith," he introduces himself as soon as your team leaves the jet.

"Hi. Jennifer Jareau. Thanks for meeting us here," she says nicely.

"Thanks for taking us on so quickly."

"Yeah. The faster we get here, the faster we can help stave off panic."

"I hear that," Jim scoffs.

"What can you tell us about the university?" Spencer asks.

"It's small and tight-knit. Dorms are still single-sex. This place draws people from all over the county, but the students are mostly the arty type."

"Have you increased uniform presence on campus?" Derek wonders.

"Yeah. Doubled it."

"Any other measures?"

"I got security shuttles running twenty-four/seven, and as of tonight, I've imposed a ten o'clock curfew."

"We need a corner of your precinct so we can set up shop."

"You got it. You need to get to the hotel first?"

"No. Spree killings in a confined area are a race. He's racing to kill as many as he can. We're racing to stop him," Gideon says bluntly and gets into the cars waiting for them.

You heard the man, there's no time for stopping. The cars immediately take you to the campus where the recent young woman was murdered. Of course, other students are gathering around to see what happened, but police and campus security made it so that your team would have some space to do your job.

The body is still on the ground when you arrive, and you take note of how her arms are placed over her chest in a criss-cross style. That's a classic sign of remorse because the killer is trying to preserve some dignity for the girls by making it seem like they are at peace after death. The young woman has her mace out as if she was going to use it, but never did.