Cry Me A River

Chapter 4 - Leland, Good Job

Once they hit the ground the team split up to cover more ground. JJ and Morgan went to the coroners office, Rossi and Reid went to the station to set up, and River, Emily, and Hotch went to check out the new crime scene.

It was a little bit of an awkward ride to the Craven house. Emily got into the back which put River in the front with Hotch, who she had pretty much just met and did not know how to talk to yet. She definitely did that on purpose too, she knows that River has been single since her toxic and abusive ex-boyfriend from four years ago. Now she's thinking she has a chance to play matchmaker with River and Hotch. River highly doubted that Hotch wanted anything to do with her and her baggage. Plus, it would be a little bit unprofessional if she started dating her boss of all people. It isn't officially against the rules but it is you know how they say...frowned upon. Either way it just was not going to happen so Emily can keep dreaming. 

They pulled up outside the Craven house, cops were still everywhere buzzing around but they were told to leave the crime scene the way that it was so that the team could analyze it. "Mrs. Craven, I'm special agent Hotchner, these are agents Prentiss and Leland."

The frail red-haired woman shook their hands feebly, "Please, come inside." The media was also outside surrounding this poor woman and her sorrow. They're like leeches feeding off the misery of those around them. "Mikey's room is this way, I'm not sure what you will be able to get from it though." Mrs. Craven pointed to Mikey's room. River slipped on a glove and gently pushed the door open. There was no sign of a struggle, the room was just covered head to toe in Spiderman memorabilia like you would expect of any seven almost eight year old boy.

"Mikey liked spiderman," Hotch looked over at the woman standing frail in the doorway.

She let out a soft laugh, "More than anything else in this world."

"Mrs. Craven is it possible that Mikey could have been led out the house if he was promised some sort of special spiderman item like a game maybe?" River noticed the PS4 game system sitting on the tv stand in the living room when they walked in. Mrs. Craven stopped and thought for a moment.

"He's... all he's been talking about lately is getting the spiderman game that came out on the PS4 but I told him that I couldn't afford it right now..."

"That could have definitely been used as a ruse to get him to come outside," Emily added.

Hotch nodded, "I agree I'm going to get Garcia on it, Leland", he looked at her, "Good job."

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"Soooo," Emily walked up beside River after Hotch and the mother left the room.

"Emily," She warned.

"Wha- I didn't even say anything," she protested.

"You implied it and you are absolutely crazy if you think I am going to entertain the idea of going out with my boss."

"It's not against the rules!" She said in a hushed whisper.

"It's frowned upon and you are gonna get me fired before I even get started," River argued.

"I'm just saying that I have noticed the way that you look at him...."

"Hey, did you guys find anything else," Hotch popped his head back into the room.

"Uh, well I noticed that his drawer is open a pair of sneakers are missing which fits the theory that he met someone willingly," River added praying he did not hear any part of that previous conversation. Not that River didn't like thinking about what it might be like to go out with Hotch. He was very attractive, older, and put together man who loved kids, and who had very strong looking hands...

That's not the point.

It simply cannot happen, Strauss would lay an egg.

"I think you're right. We should get to the station and fill in the rest of the team."

If this was a ring it sure was an elaborate one. It was way easier to snatch disenfranchised children off the street than it is getting games and building trust in order to lure out low risk children. It just doesn't make any sense... Maybe it's not a trafficking ring but then that doesn't explain the distance of the victims homes. One thing they all know for sure is that they don't have much longer to find this boy alive.