Oblivious || Spencer Reid x Original Character

Chapter 10: Shadows of the Past

"There are no secrets better kept than the secrets that everybody guesses." – George Bernard Shaw.

"Don't get comfortable. There'll be time to debrief on the plane," Hotch says sternly as the team enters the round table room. Rory runs a hand through her dirty blonde hair, anxiety pooling in her stomach. The case must be serious if they couldn't afford to spend time debriefing properly before they left.

"Where are we headed?" Spencer asks eagerly, quickly scanning the case file Hotch handed him. Rory can't help but smile at the enthusiasm in his tone. Only Dr Spencer Reid would be excited about a case that was clearly serious.

"New York," Hotch replies simply, his tone carrying a weight of urgency as the team obediently follows him into the dimly lit conference room.

"5 shootings in 2 weeks. It's about time we got the call," Rossi remarks with a hint of grim determination in his voice. Rory's eyes widen slightly at the information, opening the case file Hotch had handed her moments before.

"I want to take Garcia with us," Hotch says briskly, his eyes scanning the room. "Hopefully they'll give us access to their surveillance systems."

"What do we know?" Emily asks, her eyes narrowing as she scans the file in front of her.

"All the killings are mid-day. Single gunshot to the head with a .22 caliber," Hotch replies crisply, his voice echoing off the walls of the room.

"Any witnesses?" JJ queries, furrowing her eyebrows in concern.

"No," Hotch replies, shaking his head gravely.

"A .22 caliber pistol's only 152 decibels. New York streets and subways are routinely well over 100," Spencer interjects, drawing Rory's gaze to him. He tilted his head slightly, a characteristic gesture she had come to associate with his deep concentration. She had found herself noticing more and more of his idiosincrasies over the past month.

"It could be people aren't even registering the gunshot until the Unsub's already leaving the scene," Spencer continues, his tone thoughtful.

"They sound like Mob hits," Morgan offers, breaking Rory's attention away, nervously running a hand through her hair again as she tries to force down the butterflies in her stomach.

"Except none of them have ties to organized crime," Hotch retorts swiftly, his gaze steady.

"Do they have any connection to each other?" Rory asks, scrunching her face as she flips through the case file, her mind racing to find any hint of a pattern or connection.

"None they've found," Hotch replies, his voice tinged with frustration.

"How about communication with the police? Has the Unsub tried to make contact?" Morgan asks, his own eyebrows furrowing in concern.

"Surveillance cameras have captured video of 3 of the murders. This is the latest," Hotch says, pulling up an image on the screen.

"That's the best image they have?" JJ asks, peering closely at the grainy surveillance photo.

"They're all the same. He wears a hood and keeps his head down," Hotch explains, his expression grim.

"This guy's bold. Crowded areas, broad daylight," Rory observes quietly, her mind already trying to piece together the puzzle.

"So they're completely random?" Rossi questions, his voice low and contemplative.

"It seems that way," Hotch confirms with a sigh.

"Son of Sam all over again," Spencer muses, his voice tinged with a mix of curiosity and concern.

"How come I only get to travel with you guys like once every 2 years?" Garcia asks, her voice filled with playful frustration as she stepped onto the plane beside Morgan.