If you could see me now

Reliving the past

"Any chance there's records of someone with that name in the area?"

"That's a negative, ghost ranger. County or state-wide."

"Thanks, Penelope. I'm gonna let you go. I have to tell Hotch."

"Okay." I looked at the documents and quickly made a plan, turned off the faucet, and exited the bathroom.

"Cassidy, are you okay?"

"I'll survive. We need to talk."

"About what?"

"Not here." I whispered.

"Where then?"

"Hotch and I are going to go get some food. What do you guys want?"

"Where are you going?"

"Just to The Grill. Burgers, sandwiches, pasta." We got what everyone wanted and left.

"What is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Someone already paid for the book when I went in and got it. Lachlan Nonaday says it was a female voice."

"Okay?"

"When I asked Penelope to look into Connor and Marie's financial records, she found a repeating transfer of 10 grand into their joint account."

"From Who?"

"I don't know. From what I've seen on the documents she sent to me, It's an alias."

"How do you know?"

"The spelling is what tipped me off, but I did some research on my phone, after talking to Penelope. There are no people of that name in Ingham County, let alone the state of Michigan. I also did a country-wide search and nothing came up."

"Okay, so what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking this is all for me. MY son was taken. MY married name was on the order. My father's MO was used and modified."

"Okay."

"What are your thoughts?"

"I think if we profile you and your past, we might find out who is doing this. With this being said, you have to stay with a member of the team at all times."

"Hotch, is..."

"Even to the bathroom. It's for your safety."

"Hotch! Is there a protective detail on my family?"

"Yes."

"Someone you trust?"

"Yes, and I sent Rossi down there to oversee it."

"When did you do that?"

"Once I knew that your father was somehow a part of this."

"Thank you."

"Cassidy, you may have just joined the team, but that doesn't matter. I have your back. The others too. We look after each other here."

"That means a lot. It was just my mom and me for a long time until she met Markus. We moved a lot. Once people found out about us, about him, we would move. It was like that until she met Markus and I left to study abroad."

"You studied abroad?"

"Yes, in Cabo Verde. That's where Abel was from. I met Abel at the University of Cape Verde. I was his TA, and he was my Mathematics professor. Abel and I started dating before I knew he was my professor, mind you, plus there was only a 10 month age gap between us. We had been dating for a year when we got married. I applied for citizenship the day after we returned from the honeymoon and Noah was born 10 months later. We moved to the states about 2 years after Noah was born after my mother discovered she was pregnant with my little brother."

"So how old is Noah?"

"Noah turns 6 at the end of next month. And he is every bit as smart as his father was. Do you have any children?"

"I have a son. His name is Jack. He's 8."

"What's he like?"

"He's such a good kid." He smiled.

"Does he play any sports?"

"Soccer. He's better at it than I ever was." We pulled into a parking spot off of Grand River.

"You played soccer?"

"When I was young. Before high school."

"I was in band and orchestra. No sports for me. My father wouldn't allow it. But being in the band allowed me to cheer for Noah from the stands."

"You played an instrument?"

"I played Piano and Snare drum in high school band, but I've been playing violin since I was really young. It helps me think. Plus, it's easier to have a violin in an apartment than a piano. My apartment is on the fifth floor."