EASY WAY OUT ¹ ➢ spencer reid

XXVII

"Sydney Micheals, aged eighteen was last seen leaving work a couple of weeks ago. Her parents filed a missing persons report after she didn't arrive home from work and her car was still in the parking lot." Garcia and I cozied up in front of her computer screen, watching as JJ stood at the front of the plane. The rest of the team sat near her, their bodies peeking out from the outer edges of the video frame. "Her body was found this morning at the South side of Streetwater Creek State Park in Lithia Springs. Other than the obvious hole in her stomach coroners found no other signs of injury."

"How'd she die then?" Morgan asked.

JJ glanced down, turning over the page in her hand. "They found excessive amounts of various drugs in her system." She looked over at Morgan who nodded his head.

"Overdose?" He responded with a sigh.

"Not exactly," JJ scrunched up her face, glancing down at the sheet in front of her.

"What drugs did they find?" Prentiss asked.

"Doxacurium, Atracurium, Phenobarbital..." JJ looked up, glancing at everyone individually until Reid finally spoke up.

"Doxacurium and Atracurium are both neural inhibitors. They block signals from the brain to the muscles. Phenobarbital however, is a drug used to slow down brain activity, as well the as nervous system."

"Meaning?" Rossi raised his brow.

"He's putting them into a coma." I piped up. Everyone gave a slightly surprised look to the webcam, while Reid nodded his head.

"Were there any signs of sexual assault?" Prentiss asked.

JJ shook her head.

"Do we know if the hole was post or antemortem?" Reid asked.

"Post." JJ nodded.

"So he puts her in a coma, waits for her to die, and then carves a hole into her." Rossi leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest.

"So, if it wasn't an overdose how exactly did she die?" I asked.

"Brain haemorrhage." JJ replied.

We felt silent for a while, reading our case files. The more information we received the less likely it felt we were going to catch this guy. Nothing made sense. What kind of person would take a young girl, put her in a coma, and then stick a riddle in her stomach after she died?

"Has anyone figured out the riddle?" I asked, looking directly at Reid.

"It's a map." He responded.

I thought about it for a while, trying to wrap my brain around it. Not long after I realized how right he was. Maps only showed cities, mountains, and water. I nodded my head, obviously impressed at his unwavering intellect. "Were there any strange markings on the body?" I asked. "Maybe something that looks like a map?"

JJ shook her head.

I swore under my breath, leaning back in my chair. I couldn't help, but feel absolutely useless, especially since I was stuck at the office.

"Morgan, I want you and Prentiss to head to the coroners office. Take a look and see if you can find anything else out of the ordinary that might've gone unnoticed. Rossi, JJ and I will head to the dumpsite, while Reid, you and Rafferty try and figure out the significance of the riddle." Hotch flipped through the file before glancing up at the webcam. "Garcia, find everything you know about Micheals. Flag anyone that might stick out as a potential subject in her life."

"Will do, boss man." Garcia saluted towards the camera before cutting the video off. Afterwards, she turned to face me, letting out a heavy sigh. "This is gonna be a long one, huh?"