Come Downstairs and Say Hello; S.R.

Case 1: Part 3

Proving Hotchs' expectations, another shooting took place outside of a café mere minutes after Jo and everyone else had finished speaking. Gideon called in to publicize the profile, and now the BAU was stood in front of all the police officers gathering around them to write down their profile.

"This initial profile is not ready to be given to the media. Releasing this profile prematurely can get people killed." JJ warned the officers before stepping down and letting Hotch take over.

"We're looking for a 30 to 40 year old male veteran, driving a large enough car to shoot from, but not so large to be noticed. Like the Beltway shooter, it's probably a sedan, customized to conceal the shooter, his weapon, and the sound of his shot. The unsub suffers from both narcissistic and paranoid personality disorders. He works out obsessively and is never without a weapon." Hotch took a pause, "he's completely self-centered and can not empathize with others. Incapable of admitting fault, he blames his shortcomings on those around him. He has no friends, and his career history has been marked by frequent job changes." Jo looked around the office, feeling uneasy at the amount of clearly angered officers by this statement. "He's drawn to high-stakes jobs by a need to prove his superiority to a world he perceives has undervalued him, and these shootings are the ultimate expression of that need. We believe he changes jurisdictions intentionally and strikes during the first/second shift change, indicating an intimate knowledge of law enforcement."

"You're saying he's one of us." An officer said with a lack of question in his tone.

"We're saying he once was, or is now a police officer." Hotch clarified.

"What, is he driving a white van, too?" One of the officers snarked, just about everyone around him laughing, making Jo roll her eyes.

"Enough." An older officer who was clearly in a higher authority ordered, "that'll be all for now. We can talk in my office." He said. Hotch thanked the officers and followed the Sergeant into his office. Jo stood back with Reid, Gideon, Morgan, and Elle.

"Do they ever believe the profiles you guys come up with?"

"Only when they don't involve the people we're talking to." Elle said. Jo turned to Reid, who clearly had something on his mind.

"What's up?" She asked. He huffed.

"Look at me, without a gun I look like a teacher's assistant!" He whined, Jo smiling slightly and holding back a laugh. Gideon, who was writing something, turned to Reid.

"You're not worried about how you look." He observed. Jo, though only having been at the BAU for a couple of days, knew it was hopeless to try and lie to Gideon.

"Hotch told me that when he came to the BAU, you told him he didn't need a gun to kill somebody?" Jo leaned forward to look at Gideon, her interest peaked.

"Well, the only truly effective weapon we have is our ability to do the one thing they can't." Gideon responded.

"And what's that?" Jo piped up.

"Empathize." Joey nodded, leaning back against the wall and crossing her arms. She knew all too well what it was like to empathize, her amount of it was one of her weaknesses, after all. "They dehumanize their victims. We humanize the killers." Reid looked down.

"You're just saying that to convince me I don't need to carry a gun." He murmured.

"I don't care if you carry a gun or not." Gideon told him. "The deadliest weapon we have is a thorough and accurate profile."

"Of course you believe that."

"I believe it." Jo said, raising her hand up. Reid gave her a displeased look, and she put her hand down, clearing her throat and looking away.

"Footpath killer, he had a shotgun in the back of my head. I'm here, he's not." Gideon said before walking off and leaving Reid with a perplexed look.

"Put that in your pipe and smoke it." Jo joked, sending Reid a wink and walking off in her own direction.
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Jo stood the same place where Jerry Middleton was facing at Franklin Park, listening to directions that Hotch was giving her through a Walkie-talkie.

"Starling, Jerry Middleton was facing a little further south." Jo turned to the direction described.

"How's this?"

"Perfect. Hold your camera right there."

"It doesn't look like Jerry Middleton had a clear view of the snipers vehicle when he was shot." Gideon spoke through the walkie-talkie as well. "The tree branches were in the way."

"I do have a clear view of the vehicle from here." Reids voice filled Joes ears. "Tim Reilly would have seen it if he'd looked down from the kite" He said.

"Good. Have the unsub pop the trunk, see if Reid can see it." Gideon instructed.

"No, sorry, I can't." Reid apologized.

"Nothing from position one." Gideon reported.

"Okay, everybody, move to position two." Hotch ordered, and Jo moved to the second position she was told to stand in. A few minutes later, Gideons' voice was heard through the walkie-talkie.

"We have a lead."