«jeid oneshots»

what's it been?

published on 12/2/2020
a/n: i haven't had a lot of time to write in the past week so here's a one shot from @/straightlycurved on ao3!

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summary: a take on how 3x17 ("in heat") should've ended.

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"Charles Luvet was found floating in a Miami marina last night," JJ started. "Local M.E. thinks that he was only in the water about an hour."

"Any attempt to weigh the body down?" asked Hotch.

"Doesn't appear to be."

"Well, the dumping could be convenient, as opposed to a means of hiding the crime," Morgan speculated.

"Well, he's the third victim found in Miami in the last two months. Though the locations of the bodies are different many of the elements are the same--all males, 25-35, all travelling, all asphyxiated with no signs of sexual assault." The blonde continued to supplement the conversation.

"But tourists could mean just simple robbery," Morgan said.

"Well, there are some personal items missing..." JJ informed the team.

"He's targeting travelers for a reason," interjected Rossi.

Just then, Garcia arrived to the round table room, notably late. "I am so sorry. My alarm--I overslept--it didn't go off, I'm so sorry," she stuttered.

Hotch responded, "It's ok, everyone is allowed to be late...once."

"It won't happen again."

Meanwhile, Rossi was reading through the files in front of him and observed something strange. "You guys notice the red flag on the autopsy report?"

Prentiss had, too. "Yeah, none of the hyoid bones were fractured."

Hotch also said, "No visual signs of trauma, no ligature marks. Yet the unsub still managed to asphyxiate grown men."

Morgan theorized, "Maybe a chokehold? Wouldn't leave any signs of trauma."

Reid finally spoke up after a few minutes of silence. "It would also be a way of controlling a male. A powerful grip from behind gives the unsub all the leverage. None of these victims look out-of-shape or easy to control. In fact, they all look remarkably fit."

"Well, as I said, the recovery locations are very different. Charles Luvet was found in the water, Daniel Brown was partially buried in a shallow sand dune. Paul Hayes was stuffed into a dumpster..." elaborated JJ.

Emily noted, "It's not much of an effort to hide any of them."

Rossi again stated the obvious. "They were all found in high-traffic areas."

"Miami PD is asking for our help, considering that there are four other men missing who match this victimology," JJ relayed, displaying the photos of the other four men on the screen.

"I can dig up what I can on the victims from their hometowns," said Garcia.

"Miami is a mecca for potential targets, and anyone traveling is more vulnerable than they normally would be." Hotch said.

JJ took it from there. "Case in point, Charles Luvet, the latest victim, he was a vacationing cop."

She shifted uncomfortably here, as if she was hiding something. This did not go unnoticed by anyone at the table.

Prentiss wondered, what isn't she telling us? There's nothing about a dead cop that usually makes JJ act like this, so it has to be personal.

Her train of thought was broken by Hotch saying, "Wheels up in 30."