Ghosts • Aaron Hotchner

Chapter Four

Fallon

A few minutes later, Hotch's phone rang, causing Fallon to jump.

"Hotchner," he answered. "I'm sorry?" From his tone of voice, Fallon assumed that it was Garcia on the line, just being typical Garcia. "Do you have the right number?" Fallon smiled lightly, just now realizing that Hotch liked Garcia more than he let on. "You found her?" He waited a moment. "We'll pick her up." He looked over at Fallon.

"What was that about?" She asked.

"Garcia just found Gregory's ex-wife," he said.

***

Half an hour later, they had Gregory's ex wife sitting down in front of them, wrapped in a blanket. Fallon brought her and Hotch a coffee before grabbing her own and then joining them.

"I'm still in shock," she told the two.

"That's understandable," Hotch assured her.

"I'm more surprised that you found me. I paid a lot to have my past erased," she informed them.

"Are you saying you're not surprised that Mark is a serial killer?" Hotch asked.

"I knew something was wrong. That's why we were only married for 3 weeks," she responded.

"Have you been in hiding because you were afraid he would come after you?" Fallon asked her, putting her brain in work mode, and pushing the fact that her brother was murdered to the back of her mind.

"He stalked me for a few years after the annulment. I had to disappear if I wanted to survive," she explained.

"I know it was a long time ago, but what was life with him like?" Hotch questioned, as Fallon took a sip of her coffee.

"Terrible. He was controlling, didn't trust me, insisted I was cheating on him with anyone, with everyone. I couldn't leave the house," she told them.

"I'm sorry to dredge all this up, but you've definitely helped us understand him. He dated his first victim, and if she cheated on him, it may have been the thing that started him killing," Hotch told her. The two talked with her for a few more minutes until Gideon and Reid returned from Gregory's father's house.

***

"Based on these interviews, it looks like the first victim wasn't just being unfaithful. She had a husband and was trying to keep it a secret," Hotch said as he walked into the room.

"Sounds like he found out," Spencer commented.

"There must have been something major in his past to trigger such an extreme reaction," Hotch thought aloud.

"Maybe something with his parents' relationship had scarred him during childhood," Fallon suggested.

"Hey, guys, I found Mark Gregory's car at Atlanta International Airport," Garcia said over the call.

"Pretty smart. There's a sea of cars at the airport," McCarthy commented.

"But he parked in short term and he got a ticket," Garcia continued, which made Fallon frown in confusion. They profiled that he would most likely travel by car because it was anonymous, and it was easier. If he had bought a ticket, we could lose him.