To Solve

Chapter 18: North Mammon

"Did your aunt tell you what the emergency was?" Parker asked.

They and JJ made their way to the elevators to wait for Mrs. Homefeldt.

Mrs. Homefeldt was a friend of JJ's aunt and really wanted to talk to JJ and Parker had offered to accompany her.

"No."

The agents didn't have to wait long before an unknown woman stepped out of the elevator and walked straight towards them.

"Mrs. Homefeldt? Hi. I'm Agent Jareau and this is Agent Gallagher."

"Thank you for seeing me."

"My aunt said it was an emergency?"

"Yeah. She said to give this to you," said Mrs. Homefeldt.

She reached into her purse and pulled out a photo and handed it to JJ. It was a photo of the FBI agent in high school with two other classmates. All three wore their football jerseys.

"You played soccer."

"I don't understand," JJ said confused.

"My daughter Polly plays soccer, too. For North Mammon. The varsity team. She got a scholarship to Penn State."

Parker and JJ looked at each other briefly before the young woman turned back to Mrs. Homefeldt.

"Forgive me, ma'am. My aunt didn't really explain to me the nature of this emergency."

"No one is looking for them," said Mrs. Homefeldt.

"Excuse me?" Parker said while Mrs. Homefeldt took a second photo out of her bag.

There were three girls in their soccer jerseys again.

"Here. My daughter and her two friends. They've been missing for five days, and I know someone took them, but no one will believe me."

"Missing?"

"Yeah," confirmed Mrs. Homefeldt, reaching for a newspaper article in her bag. The two agents realized from the photo of Rebecca Bryant that it was about the Fischer king case.

"This... This here. This is you, right? I mean, you found this girl, right?"

"No, no, not just us. The... The team here did."

"It's been five days now. Can you ask them to help me? Because no one is looking for my Polly."

~~

"As much as we want to take this case, we have to be invited by local authorities. I'm sure that this friend of your aunt's is very concerned, but it doesn't work that way," said Hotch a quarter of an hour later, after gathering the team.

"JJ called the chief. He faxed over an official request for our assistance," Parker reported and handed the note to Hotch.

"This is Brooke Chambers," JJ began and the team turned their attention to the screen. "Her father, Peter, a widower, left her home alone for the weekend. Polly Homefeldt and Kelly Seymour were sleeping over Saturday night. At 9:35 p.m., during the town's pep rally for the high school football team, both Kelly and Polly called home."

At the end, JJ started the first recording.

"It's me. I know this is last minute, but please don't be angry. Brooke, Kelly, and I are going to take off on a road trip for a few days. Sort of our last adventure before graduation. We'll be back Friday night. Love you. Bye."

"Kelly Seymour left this message on her parents' machine 44 seconds later."

"It's me. I know this is last minute, but please don't be angry. Brooke, Polly, and I are going to take off on a road trip for a few days. Sort of our last adventure before graduation. We'll be back Friday night. Love you. Bye."