𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐒𝐤𝐢𝐧 |~𝚂𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚛 𝚁𝚎𝚒𝚍~|

Chapter Two

Needless to say, my family was not happy about me leaving. I had only just gotten there and was finally getting a break from my job and now I had to go back. 

My grandma frowned as she loaded up my backpack with snacks for the plane home, shaking her head the whole time. "Ils vous travaillent trop dur. Vous pourriez aussi bien vivre au siège du FBI. Es-tu sûr que tu vas bien?" They work you too hard. You might as well live at the FBI headquarters. Are you sure you're ok?

I laughed. "Oui, ça ira. J'aime les longues heures. Je devrais vraiment y aller maintenant." Yes, I'll be fine. I like the long hours. I really should go now.

I hugged everybody and then I was off to the airport. Hotch got me a pass somehow that let me get through security and customs quickly, and they didn't really look in my bag. I smirked, knowing that I got to actually take all of the food my grandma gave me. 

The flight somehow seemed longer than usual. It was awful, having to just sit there, doing nothing, while my colleagues were working hard against this killer. 

Eventually, I made it back to Virginia. I hurried out of the terminal and caught a cab that took me to my house. I changed my clothes and ran a brush through my hair before grabbing my bag and getting into my car. I was at the BAU in less than ten minutes.

I walked into the building. As soon as I made it into the room. Morgan looked up. "You're back from France already?" 

I nodded and dropped some treats on his desk. "They're from my Grandma." 

He examined them and took a bite. I sat down and got situated. "Mm, can she be my grandma too?" 

I rolled my eyes and went up to Hotchner's office. I knocked on the door. "Hotch? It's Leroy." 

He opened the door. "Great. You're here." I dug the letter and key out of my pocket. 

"That's what showed up on my grandma's doorstep. In France." Hotch examined it.  "The unsub must have sent that at least ten days ago. He must be seriously organized for this kind of planning. Not to mention, he knows where my grandma lives and he knew that I would be there." I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. 

Hotch looked at me. "Leroy, when did you last sleep." 

"I slept a little on the plane. When was that.. two days ago? I think?" 

"Go home and sleep. It's ok." 

"No, no, I'm ok." 

Hotch frowned. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I won't be able to sleep, anyways." 

I went back into the conference room and soon, everybody was in there. 

"So, clearly we have a psychopath intent on drawing us into his game," said Hotch. 

"Playing with us," added Gideon. 

"Then let's return the favor," said Elle. She was pacing the room with her arms crossed. 

"He kept telling us repeatedly to save 'her.' What 'her?'" asked Morgan.

"The items he sent must be some kind of clues. Let's get em up on the board. I got a Nellie Fox baseball card from 1963 and I got a head in a box," said Gideon.

"I got a rare butterfly in a shadow box," said JJ.

"And repeated messages to save her," added Hotch.

"I got a key and a note," I said. 

"I got the decapitated body, and a nice visit to the Jamaican police headquarters," said Elle.