timeless, spencer reid [ 1 ]

005. birthright

"It's not normal for a killer to stop for 27 years, is it?" John asks.

"No. But he could have been in prison, injured, he might have moved away." Bedelia says.

"He must have found other ways to satisfy his needs." Rossi says.

+++

"I've got a list of violations in this county that precede the 1980 murders." Emily says, giving Rossi a piece of paper. "A DUI, petty thefts, rape, assault. A few of them are repeat offenders."

"Garcia's got something." Derek walks over with his phone.

"Don't worry, it's not contagious." Penelope says. "So, I have dug across the whole country looking for this guy's M.O. I found a sum total of zilch. So, I went closer to home. I found a complaint filed by a Karen Foley in the next county over. The story's... awful. I sent a copy to all your hand-helds."

"PG version is that she was kidnapped in 1979, but then... she escaped."

"I never heard that story." John says.

"It wasn't your jurisdiction." Rossi says. "What if she was his first?"

"Like his dress rehearsal." Derek says. "Figured out who and where to hunt and learned what worked, what didn't."

"Maybe careful planning has always been a part of his process." Rossi says.

"Where is she now?" Emily asks.

"Baby girl, work your magic and find us an address." Derek tells Penelope.

"I'm on it." She says before they hang up.

+++

"Karen Foley recanted her story." Emily states as she and Derek return to the station.

"Do you think she's lying?" Bedelia asks.

"Well, something happened to her. She avoided eye contact, shielded herself, she got very defensive." Emily says.

"Just refused to admit it happened." Derek says.

"She couldn't open that door." Rossi says. "Afraid she could never come back."

"Right now the only person she's protecting is the offender." Emily says.

"We just told her that this guy could still be out there. She wasn't even concerned. She wasn't scared at all. Why?" Derek questions.

"Maybe she's got nothing to be afraid of." Rossi says.

"Where are you going with this?" John asks.

"Why can't someone let a case go?" Rossi questions.

"Because in your gut you know the son of a bitch is still out there." John says.

"Exactly. Only she doesn't blink." Rossi says.

"She'd only move back here because she thought it was safe. So the guy who actually did this to her either moved away or he died." Derek says.

"You know who this man is." Rossi tells John. "He grew up here, too. He was in his mid 20s back then. He left after you found his last victim."

"December 13, 1980." John says.

"He might have gone to prison, could have joined the military, moved away, sold his property." Derek lists.

"He was reckless in his personal life, a drinker. He would have had arrests for DUI." Emily says.

"This is it, this is your case, right here. He was meticulous. So he-- he may have had two areas of control, both private." Rossi says. "One to torture and one to confine them."