coffee | s. reid [discontinued]

05 | training

COFFEE

05 | training

Madlyn was half asleep where she was sitting on the floor. Derek removed the headset he had been wearing and looked across the room to Spencer.

"Hey, Reid," he called to grab his attention. "Garcia says it's not 'Karen'. It's actually somethin' more like-"

Gideon rushed into the room, startling Madlyn, and stared intently at the board. "Charown," he announced.

"Charown?"

"Charown. I do it because of charown," he repeated.

"That's Hebrew."

"It's God's word in anger." Spencer agreed.

Elle walked in carrying food in plastic containers. "The motive is now religious?" she asked, looking around the room for Madlyn.

"I'm here," she said, holding her hands out to Elle to take some of the food from her.

"Well, you know, in a lot of religions, God is related to fire," Spencer told them.

"Well, Brahman is fire in Hinduism, and the Jews see God as a pillar of fire," Hotch explained.

     "Christians worship God as a consuming fire," Madlyn added, Hotch nodding in agreement.

"Okay, so we're lookin' for a theology major," Derek announced. Elle threw a container of food to Spencer. He caught and stared at it as if he were confused. "Maybe he's punishing the other students for their sins."

"I don't want this," Spencer said, setting the container down.

"What's the most sinful place on campus?" Elle asked.

"Come on, Elle. When I was in college, that was everywhere," Derek told her.

"A fraternity?" Hotch suggested.

"The elevator," Madlyn snorted, looking up when everyone stared at her. She looked around them and pressed her lips into a firm line. "I didn't mean to say that," she whispered, lowering her eyes.

"A campus bar?" Elle took the attention away from Madlyn.

"No, 'cause that's not consistent with the previous targets," Hotch disagreed.

"What about the idea of baptism by fire? Aren't we all supposed to be tested through fire in Revelations?" Derek asked, looking to Madlyn. Madlyn nodded her head.

Gifeon, who had been writing on a whiteboard, looked up. "Look, it's good, it's good, but let's please do not jump to conclusions. Religion might be a part of it, but it's not necessarily the prime compulsion."