Wildest Dreams

Chapter 23

"Dr. Reid. how did you get involved with this trial?", the prosecutor asks.

"My team was called into this investigation by the Reno police department."

"And this team of yours is the Behavioral Analysis Unit, correct?" Spencer nods. "Can you explain what exactly the BAU does?"

"Certainly. We study each case closely to create a profile of the person we are trying to find. This profile includes a physical description, details from their past, and most importantly, it can predict their next moves."

"I see. So, you study the facts of the case but when it comes to the profile, it's just educated guesswork.", she says.

"I could go into detail if you would like, but our profiles are not guesswork. We can back up every aspect of our profile with facts, whether it be evidence from the crime scene, victimology, and method of operation."

"We have evidence that we would like to be presented", my lawyer chimes in.

The judge motions for the bailiff to take the file from them while the prosecutor takes a seat.

"Dr. Reid, would you please explain what you have submitted to the court?", my lawyer asks.

"Of course", he says, picking up the photocopied paper. "This first document is a page from Miss Y/l/n's personal journal. In this book, she lists each victim, the date and time of their death and details of the events that transpired. This second document is a grocery list that was taken from her apartment during the investigation. I specialize in handwriting analysis, and after close examination, this is, in fact, not Miss Y/l/n's handwriting, but a very close replica."

From the corner of my eye, I see Leora's head whip around to look at Spencer. Whenever she is angry, her jaw ticks. To a stranger, it would go unnoticed, but I am her best friend.

"On the grocery list, the writing was made with a relaxed stroke and some of the letters are loopy and stretched. Her sentences always end in a slight upward slant to the right, which matched Miss Y/l/n's handedness. In the journal, however, the words were written with a heavy touch and are each evenly spaced apart, like it was being copied. There is also no upward slant at the end, instead, it is at the beginning which would make sense, seeing as Miss Wright is left-handed."

I sneak a glance up at Spencer and give him a small smile, one he returns subtly. The prosecutor stands up from her podium and walks past the gate.

"This is only one sample of her handwriting you have compared. How can we know this is an accurate comparison?", she asks.

"I actually have fifteen samples of Miss Y/l/n's handwriting, many of which from the same journal this fraudulent list is from. I decided to only review the grocery list, as it would take too much time to go through each document in detail", he says shortly.

Dr. Reid is kind of a badass.

"Is it possible that Miss Y/l/n disguised her handwriting?"

"While it is a possibility, the probability of that is very low. If she were to disguise her writing, she could have chosen a different font, or chosen a completely different writing style. This document looks like a copy of Miss Y/l/n's handwriting, and I haven't even discussed the word choice yet."

"Please, talk about word choice, Dr. Reid", she snaps.

He has her flustered. He seems to know what he's doing.

"In Y/l/n's other writing samples, she uses abbreviations and contractions for words that are spelled out in the victim list. It is unlikely for a person to switch which words they shorten and write out, but of course, it is not impossible. This brings me to my next point: spelling mistakes. In three of the fifteen samples, the word scissor appears, as well as the victim list. In the three documents, it is misspelled, but on the list, it is spelled correctly. The list is dated between the dates of the other samples, and I find it unlikely that she learned how to spell the word, then forgot two weeks later. This is not the only example of this, and I invite you to look over the documents to see for yourself."

"Whether this is Miss Y/l/n's handwriting or not, it does not change the fact that thirteen ounces of Strychnine in her home."

Spencer hesitates and my stomach drops. He can't refute that. This is it.

"N-no, it doesn't, but I believe that it is enough evidence to open an investigation into Eleanor Wright and her involvement in this case", he says, the confidence in his voice decreased.

"Dr. Reid, are you suggesting that my client is somehow involved with tampering in this case?", the lawyer asks.

"Not at all, ma'am", he rushes out.

"If all the evidence has been presented, I would like to call a recess while the jury comes to a verdict", the judge says.

Everyone rises from their seats as the judge leaves the room before they follow suit. When the room is empty, save for Spencer, my lawyer, and I, he pulls me into a tight hug and whispers reassurance in my ear.

I lean into his touch and try to memorize the way he feels against me. Touching him was like realizing all I've ever wanted was right there in front of me.

"You'll be cleared of the charges and I'm going to take you home, okay?"

"Home?", I ask. "Where's that?"

"I don't know", he mumbles. "We'll find out when we get there."