delicate | criminal minds

Chapter 3

It was day three of the case. There were no leads, and Toni was starting to worry it would run cold. There hadn't been any new murders--thankfully. Toni saw with the team around a table in the boardroom of the Seattle PD. Moments earlier, JJ had delivered the profile to the media.

They were looking for a white man in his mid 20's to early 30's. They believed he had experienced a loss at some point, and he was have difficulty in the grieving process that would manifest in his day to day life. This loss was most like the loss of a child. He had an interest in blondes and was most likely married to one or previously engaged. He's a ticking time bomb, and probably has severe anger issues due to the violent nature of the crimes.

As normal, tips poured in. None of them were worth their time, though. Most of the calls were girls thinking their boyfriend was somehow a violent serial killer.

"So this guy had to of been done wrong by a blonde woman at some point. What is the recent stab in the wound is like a sign towards someone's womb? Like what if he was done wrong by a woman who carried his child?" Toni wasn't sure if she was on the right page, but it never hurt to throw it out there. "Also the recent stab wound in the stomach almost looks like there was hesitation."

Toni pointed a manicured nail at the recent crime scene photos.

"She's right. Look. There multiple red marks around the womb." Morgan commented. "But I don't about that theory. Wouldn't he have done it before?"

"Not necessarily," Rossi pointed out. "He could be escalating. This was the most recent kill. His anger could be getting stronger, and this is how he's expressing it."

"Garcia?" Reid asked the woman who was sitting on the other side of a computer screen. "Cross check blonde women with the loss of a child within the last five years."

Penelope's aggressive typing seemed to even echo in the Seattle Police Department boardroom. 

"Alright. I've got five matches. One of these women and her baby died in childbirth about a year ago. She looks an awful lot like the last victim." She kept typing and clicking. "And it looks like she died due to childbirth complications. She was married to a Dustin Clements."

Garcia pulled up a picture, and he seemed to match the physical appearance of the profile. Toni rested her chin on her hand. Garcia was right. Elisa Clements, the potential suspect's wife, had a striking resemblance to the latest victim. That could explain the stab in the womb.

"Any criminal history, Garcia?" Toni asked.

"Yes. Oh. Looks like he had multiple arrests for domestic abuse against his wife. Charges were always dropped." Garcia's shoulders dropped and she seemed a bit more saddened as she read on. "Looks like Mrs. Clements had filed for divorce shortly before their birth, and she had the baby in West, Texas."

"What if she was trying to get away from him? And he blamed her for taking his child away. That explains the stab in the womb. This guy sounds like he could be our guy." Toni was sure it sounded like she was jumping to conclusions, but too much was adding up. 

"Send me that address, Garcia. Toni, come with me." Hotch waved his hand and Toni quickly stood up and followed him. "Are you armed?" Toni nodded. "I'm allowed to carry with the FBI, don't worry."

She remembered her dad always telling her she didn't need a gun to kill anyone, and she never quite understood what that meant. She didn't take any risks.

Toni jumped into the car with Hotch and he pressed the gas. "Alright, Garcia. What else do you have?" Toni asked, holding the phone in between the two of them. 

"He's been in and out of jail since his wife's death. Most of it has been for sexual assault or domestic assault crimes."

It all sounded like it matched up. Hotch pulled into the driveway--the wheel barking as he came to a stop. Hotch tossed a vest to Toni. She'd never worn one in all her years with the FBI, but she had never been on this type of situation before. Her line of work never required this. She'd only worn them on the police force all those years ago.

Hotch pulled his gun from the holster and nodded to Toni to do the same. "You wanna do the honors?" he said, a smirk appearing at the corners of his lips. "Do I ever."

Toni stood at the side of the door and glanced at Hotch before he gave her another nod. Leaning back, she kicked the door open. "DUSTIN CLEMENTS FBI!" Toni shouted. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dustin make a run for the door. "Hotch! Out the back!" Toni knew she should leave it up to Aaron, but she ran after him. She could hear Hotch in pursuit behind her and telling her to ease up, but she could barely hear him. She had to stop this guy.

She was gaining on him and decided on a whim to tackle him. She done it once before when she worked for the police force. Her body made contact with his legs and brought him down to the ground. She grunted as they hit the ground and the suspect screamed and tried to break free. "HOTCH! HOTCH!" Toni yelled while trying to subdue him. She finally managed to get his hands behind him as Hotch finally caught up to them.

"Dustin Clements. You're under arrest for the murder of Aspen Thompson. You have the right to remain silent..." 

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Their backup arrived moments later and the suspect was placed in the vehicle. Toni finally got a good look at Hotch in his vest. Without the immediate threat, she couldn't help but notice how good he looked with his vest over a white button down. 

She must've been staring a bit too hard because it wasn't until Agent Morgan bumped her shoulder that she snapped out of it. 

"Like something you see, baby girl?"

Toni turned red and stumbled over her words. "N-No. I mean...yes. No, wait. I mean no." Derek was already laughing at her and he nudged her again. "You're staring at Hotch, aren't you." Toni laughed and shook her head.

Moments later she was back in the car with Aaron. "You know it was stupid to run off without me like that. You've never done this before. We didn't know how dangerous it was. You're still in a certain level of training, but I do have to admit something." Toni's heart was pounding out of fear she might be in trouble for attacking the suspect the way she did. She could've lost her grip on him easily. "That was a good move. Just aim for the middle of the body next time and not the legs." Finally, Toni saw him grin. He showed actual teeth and even his eyes lit up.

"Oh, my god. Did you just grin?" she teased, leaning in closer to him as if pretending to get a better look. Aaron chuckled and he, too, leaned in to her. Toni's heart leaped in her chest and her stomach was tying in knots. What was happening? His smile faded and his eyes fell on her lips. Toni found herself leaning closer to slowly close the gap between them, but she pulled away before she could kiss him. 

"Shit, I'm sorry. I misread that...um. Can you drive?" she laughed awkwardly as she turned away, but she felt a hand on her cheek that had her turning back to him.

She swore time stopped as his lips pressed to hers. He was gentle and her heart fluttered at his touch. His hands ran through her dark hair as hers cupped either side of his cheeks. She knew if she was standing her knees would be weak and she'd lean against him for support. 

Carefully, he pulled away and she was already craving more from him as his hands went back to the steering wheel. 

"Wow, um," Hotch chuckled. "Sorry, I hope I didn't cross a boundary."

"Agent Hotchner, I can promise you I've been begging for you to do that for days now."