"A popular theory among leading astrophysicists estimates that the hyper matter reactor would need about 10 to the 32nd jewels of energy to destroy a planet the size of earth. Now, Lucas said it took 19 years to built the first Death Star, right? But if you look at the new essential chronology, there's a testbed prototype for a super laser that spans--"
"Where are you going?" Spencer asks when Derek gets up and starts to walk away.
"Taking back the last 5 minutes of my life." The older man states.
"You can't go in there." Spencer says, noticing Derek head for Rossi's office.
"Don't you want to know about this guy?" Derek asks.
"I do." Emily gets up and follows.
"Yep." Bedelia is right behind them.
"Got it all memorized -- his books, his bio." Spencer says.
"Yeah, books have sold over a million copies." Derek says.
"So?" Spencer asks, stopping at the bottom of the stairs.
"That's a million reasons not to come back, if you know what I'm saying." Derek says, rubbing his fingers together.
"Huh." Emily hums as the three walk into the office. "Taupe walls. That's a negative color. Cold, distant. You know, emotionally, taupe is linked to loneliness and the desire to escape from the world."
"I just figured the guy's walls would be covered with plaques and commendations." Derek says.
"Huh. Maybe he doesn't want to be reminded of past victories." Emily says. "It's a new chapter for him."
"What happened to the moratorium on inter-team profiling, guys?" Spencer asks, standing by the door.
"Come on, Reid, team? I don't think this guy knows the meaning of the word." Derek says. "I mean, we already know ten times more about Bedelia than we do him -- and she works with us."
"Relax, you still don't know half of me." Bedelia quietly laughs.
"What?" Derek asks.
"What, because you've told me everything?" She questions.
"Touche." Derek nods. "But this dude's told us nothing."
"I can assure Garcia's already done some sort of search on him." Bedelia says.
"Why?" Emily asks.
"Pretty sure she does it on any new member. I walked in on her searching me." Bedelia says making Emily quietly laugh.
"Oh, I found something." Derek picks a painting up. "Looks like some type of religious art." He says as Spencer walks over.
"Welcome the dark side." Bedelia smiles at the genius who still appears very uncomfortable.
"Original, maybe?" Derek shrugs. "Definitely expensive." He lets Spencer take it.
"It's renaissance art." Spencer notes. "If that's original..." He inspects it.
"Is it?" Emily excitedly whispers.
"I don't know, it's kinda hard to tell. Means he's into the classics."
"What else?" Bedelia asks.
"Uh, Italian, strict Catholic upbringing. Probably believes in redemption." Spencer says.
"Well, I believe in a lot of things." The four straighten up, the two women sharing sheepish looks. "Catholic, yes. Italian-American, 52 years. Strict upbringing, not so much. Now, the artwork, that's 15th century, original. Cost more than my first house. And as for the wall color, it's just a base coat. Painters will come in and finish tomorrow."
"Now, if you're all finished, I think JJ and Hotch are ready for us." Rossi says, holding the painting. "Isn't that how a team works?"
Spencer quickly walks out, Bedelia following, Derek and Emily not far behind.
"Great Falls, Montana. Over the past 14 months, 3 women have been reported missing." JJ informs. "Michelle Lawford, Jennifer Hillbridge, and Darcy Cranwell. All young Caucasian brunettes. After an extensive search, all were presumed dead by local authorities."
"So at least we know he has a type." Emily says.
"And now there's a fourth woman, Angela Miller." JJ says. "This morning, she and her car went missing from a small grocery store while her husband and son were inside."
"This morning?" Spencer asks.
"Montana's requesting our help?" Rossi questions.
"40 minutes later, state troopers spotted Angela Miller's car on the highway." JJ says.
"And when troopers tried to apprehend the driver, he blew himself up with a grenade, putting one of the troopers in the I.C.U." Hotch informs.
"Are they sure she wasn't in the car with him?" Bedelia asks.
"They went through the wreckage, and it appears she's still missing." JJ says.
"Troopers get a look at the guy?" Derek asks.
"Caucasian, stocky, brown hair, mustache, early forties." JJ says. "He has a scar on the left side of his face."
"Do you think Angela Miller's still alive?" Derek asks.
"Since the other missings were never found, we don't know, but he only had her for 40 minutes, so we have to assume she is." Hotch says.
+++
"You know, I could have gotten you a coloring book at the airport." Emily tells Spencer who is coloring on the map. Bedelia quietly laughs.
"I'm creating a topographical map." Spencer states. "Weighing down and geocoding all key locations looking for algorithms."
"Yeah. That's exactly what I thought you were doing." Emily says, sharing a look with Bedelia.
"It's called a Jeopardy Surface. It's a way of narrowing down where the unsub could reside." Hotch explains.
"And by default, where he may be stashing Angela Miller." Spencer says.
"You know, it says here the guy had a fully loaded gun, so we know he had options." Derek says. "Why the grenade?"
"He wants to be remembered." Rossi says. "And he wanted to be sure to take as many cops with him as possible. He knows he's outgunned. So he waits. Times it to the last second. Boom. There are some very committed people in those parts."
"Who love their fire power." Hotch comments.
"Almost as much as they hate us." Rossi says.
"Militia." Derek mutters.
"And they're heavily armed." Spencer says.
"Yeah, but hand grenades?" Emily asks.
"It's not uncommon for militia members to have military experience. Oftentimes, they resent the structure and they get discharged." Spencer says. "And they formed their own paramilitary governments."
"Dental records are on their way to Garcia." JJ says. "I'll tell her to check the military first."
"Prentiss and I will go meet the husband." Hotch says.
"I can walk the other abduction sights." Derek says.
"Everybody else, set up base, work on geographical profiles." Hotch says. "Establish contact with the locals and tread carefully. They'll be watching us."
+++
"This is Agent Jareau with the FBI, and--" She sighs and hangs up. "That's the third time I've been hung up on."
"Try not saying FBI." Rossi tells her.
"Who was that?" Spencer asks.
"Contact for a local militia newsletter." JJ says.
"Yeah, drop the FBI part." Spencer agrees.
"A woman is missing. You'd think these people would want to help us." JJ says.
"They do want to help. The missing woman, not us." Rossi says. JJ's phone rings and she puts it on speaker.
"Go ahead, Garcia."
"You were spot on, crime fighters. Military records match." The bubbly blonde states. "Francis Goehring, 42 years old. Did a year in the army before a bad conduct discharge. Highlight of which was an arrect during a bar brawl in which three other people were hospitalized. He also appears in the federal database for... get this, aggressive militia groups."
"Aggressive militia groups. Is there any other type?" JJ questions.
"Uh-huh. That's your federal government at work. We specialize in redundancy." Penelope says.
"You see a last known address?" Rossi asks.
"A compound just outside of town." Penelope says. "It's coming your way. Oh, he also has a wife that doesn't appear to live with him. Diane Marie Goehring. Lives in Shelby a few hours away."
"Have the state police bring in the wife. Reid, Davis, and I will go make friends with his neighbors." Rossi says.
"Thanks, Garcia." JJ tells her.
+++
"You look like a pipe cleaner with eyes." Bedelia hears the man tell Spencer. "I could snap you like a twig."
"But then, he isn't alone." Rossi states, walking up and showing his badge. "We're here because this was the address listed for Francis Goehring."
"I haven't seen him in months." The guy says.
"We'd like to see his residence." Rossi says.
The man goes to shut the door, but Rossi opens the screen door.
"Francis Goehring abducted 3 women. We're looking for a fourth." Rossi holds up a picture of Angela Miller. "He took her while her husband and son were in a store. This isn't about us. It's about a woman from your community."
"I'll show you his place." The guy relents after a moment, walking out. "Piece of advice, pipe cleaner, way you're wearin' that gun... beggin' someone to take it off you."
He leads them to Francis' place, the three going inside.
"Mostly just junk mail." Spencer says. "Catalogs for firearms... survival preparedness."
"He doesn't sleep here." Rossi says.
"Postmarks are new." Spencer notes. "He probably just uses this address for mail."
"Odd choice of reading material." Rossi comments.
"Uh, speaking of reading material, I've, uh, read all your books." Spencer says.
"Thanks." Rossi kicks the lock off a truck and opens it.
"Um... one thing that always kind of struck me as odd is that you really just sort of glance over Ruby Ridge." Spencer says. "I mean, you don't-- you don't have to tell me, I..."
"This picture seems old." Rossi says, holding a photo. "It's part of a past life. We need to find where his new life is. How's that map of yours coming along?"
"I've got it narrowed down to about a 30 mile radius." Spencer says.
"Well, Hotch seems to think he was on foot. That's a long walk."
"I'm still refining it."
"Good." Rossi digs through the trunk more. "Hello." He grabs some tapes. "Home movies."
+++
"An earthly kingdom... cannot exist without the inequality of persons. Martin Luther understood the weak will always serve the strong. Like me. He had dreams. And ideas."
"It's funny. He uses the chair like it's a throne and he's framing himself intentionally with a low angle to give him power and dominance in the frame." Spencer says.
"In feudal times, the Lord lived on high ground to spot the invader. He had serfs to serve his kingdom. The Lord never had to leave his castle. The serfs would bring him everything. They were the appendages of his will."
"There's 11 more tapes of this?" Emily asks.
"It's his manifesto." Spencer says.
"First, I will build a compound, a kingdom. Second, I will arm, protect, and fortify my kingdom. Third, I will keep women as serfs to serve my every need. This is my right. As a man with free will in America, I will make my kingdom a reality."
"Well, we know he's moved out of his house. My guess is that kingdom is the reality now." Rossi says.
"Hey, he talks about keeping women to serve him." Emily says. "It's possible all these women are still alive."
"Excuse me." JJ interrupts. "Goehring's wife is here."
+++
"Angela's been dead no more than half an hour." Hotch says. "The partner was just here."
"He can't have gotten far. We set up road blocks within a 40 mile radius." The sheriff says.
"Sheriff, somebody around here must know who Goehring's partner is." Hotch says.
"We should try Goehring's pals, the militia. Maybe they can help." Rossi says.
"Militia leader is Harris Townsend. He owns a bar called The Horse Post." The sheriff says.
"I'd suggest sending Morgan." Rossi says.
"What?" Derek asks. "All due respect, Rossi, but you've got an entire team to pick from. You're choosing me? Are you serious?"
"No offense, but do you really want to do that?" The sheriff asks.
"Take JJ with you." Hotch says.
"They know we're here. But you're the last face they expect." Rossi says.
"Let's do it, JJ." Derek says.
"Sheriff, we need to get into the house." Hotch says.
"Not until I get the all clear." He says. "Goehring blew himself up. God knows what else he's got in there."
"Search what you can until we can get in. Anything to build a workable profile." Hotch says.
Rossi, Spencer, and Bedelia go inside the barn.
"Keeps everything neat." Rossi comments.
"Obsessively so." Spencer says. "His trailer was organized, but this is different." Rossi opens the gun safe, all of the guns gone.
"Uh oh." Rossi says as Bedelia winces.
"We found some cartridges and different casings." Spencer says.
"The gun racks were empty. He took his entire arsenal." Bedelia informs.
"7.62 millimeter." The sheriff says. "He's got an assault rifle."
"And I found 2 sets of men's shoes of different sizes." Hotch says.
"We found fresh tire tracks. Small pick up truck." The sheriff says.
"I know it doesn't narrow it down much, but let the troopers know they're looking for a man in a pick up." Hotch says.
"If he's as prepared as Goehring, he'll have a police scanner and a 2 way radio." Rossi says.
"We can tune into the state geological survey frequency. Nobody ever listens to that." The sheriff says.
"Hey, guys?" Emily calls, the four going over to where she is. "There are three sections of roses, different heights, different levels of maturity."
"Three different women." Hotch says.
"These appear to be the most recently planted." Emily says. "The tags are still on them. Guys..."
"Carrion beetles." Spencer notes.
"Like in a cemetery." Emily says.
"Sheriff, let's get some shovels. We need to start digging." Hotch says.
+++
"Didn't find any explosives." The sheriff says, leading them into the house. "Nothing rigged, but be careful."
Spencer, Emily, and Bedelia go to the kitchen.
"One, all actions must serve to please the master." Emily reads the list of rules. "Two: subordination will result in punishment." This is his new manifesto."
"Notice how "Master" is singular and capitalized, emphasizing there's only one dominant partner." Spencer says, taking a photo off the fridge.
"So his partner is more of a servant." Bedelia says.
"Or a serf." Spencer says. "Watching the house, minding the lawn, helping him abduct women."
"Okay, so if his partner is a serf, what are the female slaves for?" Emily questions.
"Oh, I think I can answer that." Rossi says.
They follow Rossi into a bedroom, a wooden chair with straps attached to it in the room near the bed. Bedelia winces as she walks around.
"Now we know why the victims were taken so far apart." Spencer says. "They tortured them. It took time for them to die."
"This is where he kept them. The blood's fresh." Hotch says, looking inside the closet.
"What the hell is this?" Emily asks, holding up some sort of tool.
"The Pear of Anguish." Spencer states.
"The wh-- oh." Bedelia frowns when she remembers what it is.
"I've got something here." Rossi lifts the bed up, the underside full of torture tools. "Homemade torture tools. They covered the floor in something. The bodies are probably wrapped in whatever it was. They must have kept these women in that box for months, judging by these tools. There will be a considerable amount of mutilation. We need to do what we can to help their families give a proper burial."
+++
"That's it. The whole tamale." Penelope says. "Every horrific frame. I'm done."
"No luck seeing the partner?" Emily asks.
"No. He's-- I scanned every frame. He's holding the camera." Penelope says.
"You okay?" Emily asks.
"No." Penelope answers.
"I'm sorry." Emily says.
"I emailed a couple kitten videos earlier." Bedelia informs.
"Thanks." Penelope heavily sighs, hanging up.
"This is Jennifer Hillbridge, the second woman abducted." Emily says, playing the video.
"Please, stop. Please. It hurts." Jennifer begs.
"What is it with you? Huh?" Goehring asks. "What is it with you? You just don't get it, do you? Total power over your life."
"The cameraman frames Goehring, but never her." Spencer says. "Watch. He never stays on her that long."
"He's more interested in Goehring than the torture." Emily says. "He's lingering on his biceps like he's caressing Goehring's body."
"Why the hell?" The sheriff questions.
"The unspooled tapes -- that wasn't to destroy evidence." Emily says. "It was from jealousy."
"What?" The sheriff asks.
"He's in love with Goehring." Emily states.
They watch Goehring tie a rope around Jennifer's wrists.
"He's teaching him how to tie the perfect knot." Spencer says.
"A trucker's hitch. She's not going anywhere." Goehring says.
"So he can be the perfect serf." Emily says.
"It would be part of his servitude to clean his house, help abduct girls, bury the bodies, get supplies, plant the roses." Spencer says.
"He had to buy roses, and a lot of them." Emily says.
"Someone must have seen him." The sheriff says.
"We gotta get to the nurseries." Bedelia says, the four quickly getting up.
+++
"He's destroyed everything he owns." Hotch states.
"He has no identity. He burned his face off his pictures." Spencer says, holding a photo up, the face burnt off.
"Why?" Hotch questions.
"A submissive depends upon a dominant partner not only for instruction, but for purpose and meaning." Spencer says.
"So he's starting over, wiping the slate clean." Hotch says.
"Yeah, but as what?" Emily asks.
+++
"Sheriff, he's taken on Goehring's persona." Hotch informs. "We have to assume he's going to behave the same way. He's heavily armed, and he's committed to his cause."
"If he's caught, he's not only willing to die, but to take as many of us with him as possible." Rossi states.
"He's got a hostage, which means I'm going to need the best sharp shooter you've got." Hotch says.
"That's fine. But we don't even know where this guy's headed." The sheriff says.
"The team's been working the profile, and we think we've got something." Hotch says.
"In the tapes, Goehring makes several mentions of "ideal land."" Emily says.
"He also said that "Lords live on higher ground to better surveil the land and spot invaders."" Spencer says.
"He studied medieval defense strategies, so he'll probably go to a place where he can protect himself." Bedelia states.
"High ground, easily defendable. This picture was on Goehring's fridge." Emily says, going over to the crime board and grabbing the photo, giving it to the sheriff. "Do you know where that is?"
"That's Black Eagle Peak." The sheriff says. "Militia groups used to use it for training drills till the state dropped them."
"Ideal land." Hotch says.