NO GOOD DEED || S. REID

2.8

KATHARINE SAT ON THE EDGE OF A DESK, phone in one hand and a notepad full of ideas in the other. She had written down nearly everything they had on this case due to the fact that she had grown restless just sitting around in the station.

At first, it was the pens. She kept fiddling with them and bending the plastic clips backward until they snapped off which prompted Spencer to have to confiscate the pens. 

He gave her a clickable pen after that, which was also a bad idea because she wouldn't stop clicking the writing utensil. 

Then he just gave her a regular old pencil to which she just continued to write theory after theory until the sharp tip wore out and she would have to sharpen it which kept her occupied for some time.

Katharine tapped her fingers impatiently on the notepad, the dull sound of her nails hitting the page filling the silence of the room. The officers of the station were gathered around them as they prepared to receive the profile they had built up about their unsub.

Detective Moreland had sat in a chair in front of them while the officers arranged themselves in half-circles around him. It was very organized for the number of people they had managed to herd into such a small space.

Katharine reached for a pen that had been left on the table, one of the clickable ones, when Spencer intercepted her hand. He grabbed her wrist and placed it back on the pad of paper before snatching up the pen and shoving it into his pocket. She pouted at him but he paid her no mind, a smirk plastered on his face.

When the last officer finally filed into the room, Hotch began the briefing.

"We suggest that you think of this unsub not as a slasher but as an arsonist," he said. "Because the gratification he's getting isn't from the physical act of murder but from the public's reaction to it."

"Arsonists draw attention to themselves through the fires they set," said Emily from her spot next to Spencer. "The locations they choose are highly symbolic to them. While this unsub will never set an actual fire, he has the same psychosis as one who does."

Spencer took one of his hands out of his pocket, using his free hand to gesture outwardly. "Our unsub fits that model. His locations have been pillars of the community. The victims he picks aren't as important as the effect of killing them outside of your favorite restaurant or place of worship."

"By picking locales with the highest visibility, he's creating the highest level of fear in that neighborhood, which reinforces his feeling of power," Derek continued.

"Yeah, but arsonists don't set out to hurt people," Detective Moreland pointed out. "This guy clearly does."

"That's true," Derek agreed. "And this unsub definitely falls in the category of a sociopath."

"His victims are there only to achieve his goal," Katharine said, flipping her phone over in her hand. She kept her eyes on the officers, however, attempting to make eye contact with some of them. "He doesn't have the ability to empathize with them. To him, they're just tools for him to use, no different than a can of gasoline and a match."

"But even how he kills tells us something," Rossi continued. "Slashing a throat is a messy, visual act. It's designed to create attention, just like a fire."

"Arsonists are often mission-based," Spencer explained. "They need to make sure their first fire has burnt out before they set another one. They're also highly disciplined and focused. If conditions aren't right to set a fire, or in this case, slash a throat, they'll move on."

"In addition to his need to kill, he has self-control," Katharine said. "He has a short cooling-off period because he's enjoying what he's doing. This, in turn, feeds his ego and keeps him covering his tracks."