CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: THE REAPER !

4x18
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HOTCH WANTED ANY CASES DOWN IN BOSTON THAT INVOLVED SERIAL HOMICIDES. And that's exactly what he got when JJ had come to him with a case file involving a murder with a couple.

The team had been on the jet, briefing about the murder with a man who named himself 'The Reaper'. "'The Reaper is driven by a need to dominate, control, and manipulate'." Hotch said, reading from a file.

"So then why would he offer a deal that would stop him from doing that?" Emily asks and Casey looks at the woman next to her. "Well, killing gave him power, but after so many, the payoff began to diminish. So he decided to switch tactics. Offering the deal gave him the ultimate power, Better even than killing. He manipulated the police Into voluntarily surrendering." Hotch told. "He even got it in writing." Reid added.

"He won, why start killing again?" JJ asks. "Well, because the only person who knew he'd won, the person he made the deal with, just died." Morgan explained. "Narcissistic killers need other people to recognize their power. That's why they contact the media." Rossi said. "So how did he stop for 10 years?" Casey asks.

"In 'Night of The Reaper'," Reid holds up a book that had been writing about The Reaper. "The author suggests he had been arrested for an unrelated crime or died. Perhaps he's trying to correct that misconception." Reid stated.

"What has he been doing all this time?" JJ asks. "Planning what he would do if he started killing again." Hotch answered and Morgan continued, "So from '95 to '98, he shoots, stabs, and bludgeons 21 victims. Men, women, all ages, all types. No specific victimology or MO. How did you build a profile from there?" Morgan asks Hotch.

Hotch had dealt with this criminal before, but he was never caught. To the day, the case always irked him. "We didn't," Hotch said. "Shaunessy sent us home before we had a chance. BTK, The Zodiac, and The Reaper all have similarities. They're all highly intelligent, disciplined, sadistic killers who name themselves in the press."

"Highly intelligent may be a bit of an understatement," Reid told. "The Reaper and The Zodiac Killer have never been arrested. The BTK Killer was only caught after twenty-five years because he went to the press to counter a book that said he'd died, moved away, or been locked up, just like this one." Reid explained.

"Speaking of the media, when this gets out, it's going to be a frenzy." JJ reminded. "If they get wind of this, they're going to be all over the Boston police." JJ holds up evidence of a note that had been sent to Shaunessy before he died by The Reaper himself.

"The longer we can float the copycat story, the better chance we'll have of catching him." Hotch told. "Rossi, Prentiss and Morgan, go to the field office, set up shop, go through everything there. JJ, Willows and Reid, we'll go to the crime scene." Hotch ordered.

             So, the team went their separate ways and Casey, JJ and Reid waited in the car, in front of the crime scene tape as Hotch went to speak to an officer. They hadn't been let in on the case yet and Hotch needed confirmation from him in order to be let in. Hotch waved over at the car and three exit out of the car and cross over the crime scene tape over to their unit chief.

          "This is SSA Jennifer Jareau, Dr. Spencer Reid, our intern, Miss Casey Willows, Sergeant Mike O'Mara." Hotch introduced. "Uh, we're setting up at the field office." JJ told.

           The man looked over at Hotch. "Okay, I'm done here. Give them anything they want." Hotch nodded at the man in gratitude. "Thank you." The man walked away and Reid looked from the file.

           "Nina Hale, nineteen and Evan Harvey, twenty-three. Nina's throat was slashed, she was stabbed forty-six times. Evan was bludgeoned and then shot. No shell casings were found." Casey looked at the vehicle and the blood stained on the cement.

            "He preferred revolvers, .44 Magnum. 'The younger the female victim, the more time he spends with them, usually with a knife.'" Hotch recalled.

             Casey looked down at the pictures on the file and peeked over Reid's shoulder. "Tan line on her wrist. Probably wearing a watch of some sort." She stated. "Do we have his wallet?" Hotch asked one of the investigators.

             "The Reaper took items from each victim and placed them on the next, so as to make sure we knew it was him. No corrective lens requirement." Hotch said. "The glasses aren't his?" Reid asked.

             "He only took glasses from one victim-- the ninth. We should have found them on the tenth and we didn't. They were never found." Hotch explained.

             "What was so special about the ninth victim?" Reid asked.

             "He survived."

 
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           "George Foyet, 28, was the ninth victim and the only one to survive The Reaper." The team had all done back to the station as Hotch began to release information to his co-workers about the surviving victim of The Reaper.

          "Not for lack of trying." Rossi commented. "Amanda Bertrand, nineteen, his date for the evening, was not as lucky. He likes to attack them inside or near their cars, at night, on poorly lit, less populated roads." Hotch explained as he showed the pictures of the dead woman on the screen.

           O'Mara continued, "Foyet said he approached them pretending to be a lost tourist. In the hospital, we put Foyet with a sketch artist." He told as Hotch had put a picture of the sketch artist on the screen.

          "The Reaper always uses some sort of ruse to get close to and spend time with his victims." Hotch said.

          "The eye, as he depicts it," Reid continued. "Appears to be the eye of providence, a symbol adopted by the US government and incorporated into The Great Seal in 1782 with the words, 'Annuit Coeptis' inscribed beneath. That's Latin for 'providence' — or fate — 'has favored our undertakings.' The Reaper seems to see himself as the personification of fate." Reid explained.

           "So, how did Foyet survive?" Emily asked. Hotch looked over at Reid, who played a recording of the 911 call. The Reaper had made the 911 call and gave the exact location of where Foyet was.

            "That call was made from a pay phone about a mile from the crime scene. EMTs arrived 15 minutes later. Bertrand was DOA, Foyet, barely breathing." Reid told.

            "So, The Reaper made one of these calls after each of his killings telling police where to find the bodies." Emily stated. "Until this one, the ninth. If he hadn't made this call, Foyet wouldn't have been found in time. The call saved him." Hotch explained.

             "So, The Reaper didn't make any 911 calls after this one." Morgan asked and Hotch shook his head. JJ's cell phone had rung and she picked up instantly. "Looks like he learned his lesson." Emily said. "There's a reason he left Foyet's glasses at the last crime scene. Foyet could be in danger." Hotch told.

            "We'll find him." Emily said as both her and Morgan stood up. JJ got off the phone. "Hotch, there's a reporter outside insisting on speaking with you. Roy Colson, says he knows you." JJ told, looking over at Hotch.

The following night, another murder from The Reaper had occurred and Casey could tell that Hotch was distraught about this. He wanted to catch this guy and it was all too clear. Hotch had given the profile to the team and to the station. Casey, Emily and Morgan had been in a different room, chatting with Garcia and she couldn't find squat on Foyet and it was time to tell Hotch that they couldn't.

Emily had walked back in the room, Hotch following behind her. "Garcia can't find George Foyet." Morgan told. "I've got nothing, sir." Garcia said. "What do you mean?" Hotch asked.

"He's gone," Garcia told. "I mean, he's completely off the grid and he's gone."

"How is that possible?" Hotch asked.

"Nine months after he was released from the hospital, he, uh, quit his job, sold his car, closed his bank accounts, canceled his credit cards, cell phone, apartment, everything. He has no paper, thus he has no trail, and I can't find him 'cause he's gone." Garcia explained.

"You think it's intentional?" Hotch asked.

"It's more than that," Garcia said. "Like, even dead people stay on the grid for decades. Take it from me, erasing yourself like this, it's extremely difficult. It takes commitment. You'd have to be willing to cut every tie of everything and everyone you've ever known in your entire life. It's like-- it's like killing yourself. I gotta say, this is impressive."

"Well, after what the guy's been through, can you blame him?" Emily questioned. "Foyet's the only living person who knows what The Reaper looks like and he's still out there."

"But it doesn't change the fact that we still need to find him." Hotch told. "I'll keep looking." Garcia said. "Garcia, we don't have much time." Hotch said and Garcia continued, "I know, sir."

"He would have to completely isolate himself. He's totally alone." Morgan said. "But how do you cut all ties? You'd have to talk to someone, right?" Casey asked.

Hotch looked down at the book in front of him that Roy Colson had wrote about The Reaper and suddenly got an idea.

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          So Casey went with Hotch and Rossi to go speak to George Foyet after finding out where he lives through Roy Colson. They waited in a vehicle in front of his house and waited for Foyet to pass by so they could talk to him.

         "How did Colson find this guy?" Rossi asked, reading Casey's mind since she wanted to know as well. "He interviewed Foyet extensively for his book. They kept in touch." Hotch told.

          "They're friends?" Casey asked. "Sort of," Hotch said. "But Foyet wouldn't give him his phone number. He gave him one of his aliases, though."

           Hotch looked ahead. "That's him." Casey spotted an older man, walking slowly and holding groceries in his hands. He looked timid, tired and rough. Casey, Rossi and Hotch had gotten out of the car and began to approach the man across the street.

          "George Foyet?" Hotch asked and the timid man looked up. "It's okay, we're FBI. This is agent Rossi. I'm Agent Hotchner and this is our intern, Miss Willows." Casey threw a small wave at the man. "We met once before. Do you remember?"

          Foyet nods, "Yeah, I remember." He looks around. "Would you mind if we get off the street, please?" The man coughed and the three followed inside of his home.

         "How'd you guys find me?" Foyet asks as he places his groceries down. "Roy Colson." Hotch says. "Well, is this gonna take long? 'Cause I really can't be late for work." He popped a couple of pills.

          "What do you do?" Casey asked, striking conversation. "I'm a freelance computer specialist with the city." Foyet tells and Casey nods. "We're sorry to bother you. We'll make it as quick as possible." Rossi assured.

           "This yours?" Hotch holds up a bag that contained his glasses that were found at the first crime scene. The man looked up at Hotch and hesitantly took his glasses in his hands. "I knew it wasn't a copycat." The man coughed once more and Casey took it upon herself to get the man a glass of water as he sat himself down. She handed him the glass and he nodded to her, "Thank you."

            Foyet drunk from his glass and sighs, "I'm sorry. I was gonna propose to her that night... at the restaurant, but I got cold feet. The ring was still in my pocket when he approached us. He said he was lost. He had one of those sightseeing booklets. I was looking at it when he stabbed me." He explained, reminiscing of the night that tortured him most.

          "Mr. Foyet, you don't need to go through this again." Rossi told. "I couldn't move," Foyet sniffled as he continued. "I just sat there, bleeding. I watched him kill Mandy. He stabbed her 67 times. Do you know how long it takes to stab somebody 67 times? I never found the ring." Casey felt bad for the man. He lost the person he loved most and to see her die like that? And now, he had to live the rest of his life in pain and weak and looking over his shoulder 24/7. Casey couldn't live like that.

          "He should have left your glasses on his next victim... but he didn't. He held on to them all this time." Hotch told. "Well, you think he's got some special interest in me? I've been living with that possibility for the past eleven years." Foyet said as he stood up.

          "Have you received any strange letters or calls? Hang-ups?" Rossi asked. "I keep residences under different names. I move between them randomly. He likes to get you in a car, so I take the bus. Believe me, I've gone to great lengths to make sure that none of the things you've just mentioned ever happened." Foyet explained.

          "We'll need your other names and residences so we can reach you." Rossi holds up a notepad with a pen. "We can take you someplace safe until this is over." Hotch insists but Foyet shakes his head. "No, Boston's my home. It's the one thing I promised I would never let him take from me."

           "Then we'll protect you here." Hotch tells. "You can't protect me. Nobody can." Foyet takes the notepad in his hands and writes down his addresses. "Please be careful with this. Please." He hands the notepad back to Casey. "It's safe with us." She assures.

           "He's just a man, nothing more." Hotch said. "Then why can't you catch him?" Foyet questions and Hotch looks at the man. "We will." He assures. "Thank you for your time." Rossi says and Casey nods at Foyet as the three leave.

Later on that night, Hotch had received a call from The Reaper himself and he offered a deal to which Hotch didn't take. He had killed six people on a bus the same night and the numbers on the bus were written in blood 1488 201 1439 NO DEAL. Hotch had blamed himself for the victims being killed but Rossi had assured to him that this wasn't his fault. The team had gone back to the station to go over what The Reaper had written on the windows of the bus.

"He never used code before. Why now?" Hotch asked as Casey looked over the pictures that were taken. "They're not part of a pattern or equation. Mathematically, they're insignificant." Reid told. "Maybe so, but I know I've seen them before." Rossi said.

"Foyet said he likes to attack people in their cars. Tonight, he hit a bus. Which is why Foyet only takes a bus." Casey told, reminding both Hotch and Rossi. "It was the number 7." Hotch said, going towards the map of city. "And it stops right in front of Foyet's apartment." Hotch points. "He knows where Foyet lives." Rossi says. "And he wants us to know it."

"1439," Reid mutters. "What was that, Reid?" Casey asked. "1439, The apartment you interviewed him in today was 1439 Yarbrough." Rossi pulls out his notepad. "The other addresses he gave us. 201 South Brookline. 1488 Edenhurst. The numbers on the bus are Foyet's addresses." Rossi told.

"Foyet's next on his list?" Casey asks. "Possibility." Reid says. "We'll split up and cover each address." Hotch tells and Casey nods, standing up from her seat.

Reid and Hotch spilt up together, so did Rossi and Emily and then Casey and Morgan, along with O'Mara.

Casey had put on an FBI vest and O'Mara volunteered to take the back as soon as they had reached the home. "Willows, stay close." Morgan told and Casey nodded. She held her gun out, with her heart down to her stomach. Morgan had gotten the door open after nodding to Casey.

Casey, of course, did stay close to Morgan but she went into a separate room to look and see if The Reaper had been around. Before she could turn, something hit the back of her head and everything turned black.

The girl had woken up when someone had nearly shaken her awake. "Miss Willows. Miss Willows, are you alright?" A woman had been in front of her and Casey recognized a medic when she saw one. "What-What happened?" She groaned in pain looked over and took in her surroundings. "You were unconscious. Are you okay?" Everything then became clear and Casey remembered —

"Morgan." She said. "W-Where's Agent Morgan?" Casey asked. "He was unconscious, too. He may need a couple of stitches, but he's okay." Casey sat up and felt something in her hand, she looked down at her palm and a bullet was in her hand. Where could that have come from?

Thirty minutes later, the team arrived at the house where Morgan and Casey were. They had both discovered that O'Mara was murdered by The Reaper. Both of them questioned how either one of them could be alive right now. They were confused. Why did The Reaper leave them alive when he had a chance to kill them both?

             Casey held an ice-pack to her head and Morgan was getting glass pulled from his shoulder since The Reaper had rammed him into the window, knocking him unconscious.

           "You all right?" Hotch asked as soon as he arrived, Emily standing next to him. "He took my credentials." Morgan said. "The important thing is that you're both okay." Hotch said, looking at both Morgan and Casey.

           Casey held up the bullet in her hand. "He left me this. It was in my hand when I woke up. Nothing of mine was taken." She told. "Power and manipulation. Don't let him get to you." Hotch told the girl and he had walked away and Casey sighed, "Yeah, right."

          Morgan friend in pain as the glass was being taken out of his shoulder. "Prentiss, he's telling us, 'I had you.'" Morgan told. "Morgan, you're alive. You both are." Emily told.

         "You know why?"
         "It doesn't really matter."
         "I'm sitting here because I was knocked out cold. He couldn't torture me or Willows."

          "We both were knocked out. He could've killed us but he didn't." Casey said. "He likes to interact with his victims, to tell them he's going to kill them before he does." Emily told.

           "Or by letting them know he could have." Casey said, holding up the bullet. "Hotch is right," Emily told. "He's just trying to get into your head."

           "Right or wrong, he had us." With that, Morgan stood up and walked out of the house. Emily looks over at Casey. "You okay?" She asked and Casey shrugged, "Close call with death, what do you think?" She asked and walked out of the house, following Morgan.

           The team had gone back to the station and began to ask themselves the same question. "Why is he so focused on Foyet? What's so special about him?"

          "He was his only surviving victim, the only one he couldn't defeat." JJ thinks. "But he's not a threat. Defeating him would be no great accomplishment. There's something there that we're missing." Hotch stated.

          "What about the girlfriend, Amanda Bertrand? What do we know about her?" JJ asked. "Nineteen, a freshman. She came her from Michigan to go to school. Foyet was a teacher's assistant in one of Amanda's courses." Emily told.

          "Michigan, where The Reaper had Shaunessy post the personal ad." Hotch told. "That can't be a coincidence. Somehow, this is all connected to Foyet. But it goes even deeper than that." Casey stated.

          "He told us she was the love of his life, that he was gonna propose." Rossi told. "But she just got here from Michigan. They only met when the class started." Morgan said. "How long had she been in the class?" Hotch asked Emily since she had the file. "Four weeks." She said. "So it was either love at first sight or what?" JJ asked. "Foyet was lying?" Morgan asked.

           "He's a 28 year-old teacher's assistant in freshman classes. That gives him plenty of access to young girls." Hotch stated. He begins to call up Garcia, who instantly picks up. "I'm here." She chirps up.

          "What are Foyet's aliases?" Rossi hands a notepad over to Hotch. "I want you to look up in Boston City Records: Kevin Baskin, Miles Holden, and William Parker. Try the department of education." He explained.

           "Well played, sir. So, they all work for the department of education, they're all substitute teachers and they all teach computer science." Garcia told.

           "High school?"
           "Yeah," There is a brief pause from Garcia. "Oops. Scratch that. They're not all working for the department of education."

           "They're not?" Hotch asked. "No, William Parker was fired for alleged inappropriate behavior with his female students." Hotch began to have a look on his face that made him think and he thought long and hard.

            "Colson went to see Foyet." Hotch said. "Garcia, I need you to locate Roy Colson's cell phone. George Foyet is The Reaper." Casey looked up at her boss in confusion.

            Casey could sense Garcia's panic over the phone. "Oh, God. Uh-- okay, triangulating now." There is another brief pause. "I got it. 2633 South Budlong."

           "That must be an address that foyet didn't give us." Morgan told. "Let's head there now." Hotch told and the team had gotten their FBI vests back on and headed down to the given address.

Casey had gone into the vehicle with Hotch, Rossi and Morgan as Emily and Reid followed in the vehicle behind them. "He stabbed Amanda Bertrand to death, he drove a mile, he called 911, he went back and he inflicted those wounds on himself." Hotch guessedd. "He knew EMS would get there in time to save him." Rossi added. "Between the phone call and the severity of his wounds, we never considered him as a suspect." Hotch stated.

"Why would he do it?" Casey asked. "It put him at the core of the investigation. Everything we had came from him." Hotch told. "He left his own glasses at the crime scene, he pointed us right back in his direction and still, we didn't see it." Morgan stated.

         The team arrived at the address and snuck through the back of the place, Casey going with Rossi and Hotch. Foyet had a gun pointed at Colson and he was seated in front of his laptop. The man that Casey once thought as a timid weak man was no longer a timid and weak man as she thought he was. "It's over." Foyet stood up, his gun still aimed at Colson. "Stop. I'll kill him."

         "You need him to write your story." Hotch said. "I'm taking him with me. I'll let him go as soon as I'm safe." Foyet told. "No, you're not." Hotch stated. "I said I'll kill him." Foyet pressed.

          "You kill him, I kill you." Hotch said, his gun aimed at Foyet. "You think I'm afraid to die?" Foyet questioned. "You're not afraid. You're greedy and narcissistic. You want the recognition that's going to come from the book that he's gonna write. You want the fame that's gonna come from the media. It's gonna be like Bundy."

         "I'm gonna be bigger than Bundy." Foyet growled as Morgan, Emily and Reid had come around the other entrance of the house, aiming their guns at Foyet. "Well, you can't enjoy it if you're dead." Hotch told.

          "If you know me so well, how come somebody had to die to bring you here?" Foyet questioned. "That's your choice, not mine. You're the serial killer." Hotch said. "That's right." Foyet nodded. He turned around and looked to see Morgan behind him, his gun pointed right at him. "Hello, Derek."

           Foyet smirked and then surrendered his gun, putting it on the table and Morgan forcefully grabbed him. "Where's my badge?" He questioned. Foyet didn't say a word and Morgan grabbed a fistful of his hair. "Where is it, you son of a bitch?"

          Foyet had looked straight at Hotch. "I'm gonna be more famous than you even realize." Morgan rolled his eyes. "Keep dreamin'." He dragged him outside and Hotch had asked Colson if he had been alright.

          After that, the case was solved and everyone had been going home on the jet. Unfortunately, Morgan didn't have his badge or credentials and Foyet wouldn't talk. Casey sat near the window, looking at the glistening stars up in the sky.

          "Hey." Reid spoke and Casey looked over. "Hi." She said and he had two cups of coffee in his hands and he handed one of them to Casey. "You looked like you could use it." He said and Casey smiled, taking the cup.

            "Are you alright?" Reid asked and Casey shrugged, "I don't know." She answered. "I just... I stood next to the man. I gave him a glass of water, I was polite to him... and... and he was The Reaper the entire time. Why couldn't I see it?"

             "It wasn't just you," Reid assured. "Hotch, Rossi, even I, couldn't see it. You know, there are approximately 2,000 active serial killers in the US out of a population of 325 million. Chances are, we could've walked by a serial killer on the street and we didn't know about it." Reid was definitely trying to make Casey feel better.

"Thanks, Reid." Casey said.
"For what?" Reid furrowed his brows.
"For... being you." Casey said.

For a couple of days, it had been quiet... that was until JJ had received news that Foyet had escaped from prison. Emily, Reid and Casey had joined up to Hotch, JJ and Rossi. "The Boston Field Office just identified documents from Foyet's house." Emily told.

           "They're schematics for the electrical, heating, and water ducts for the East Woburn Correctional Facility." Reid explained. "He had the schematics." Reid added on, "And not just for Woburn. For every jail, prison and courthouse in Massachusetts."

           "And 10 years to plan." Rossi added.
           "He knew," Casey told. "In case he got caught, he had all of these plans. That's why he said what he said before we arrested him." She explained.

           "They're gonna find him, right?" Penelope asked and Hotch looked at the TV that Morgan's eyes had been glued to. "No, they're not." He stated. Morgan turned around and faced the team. "He said he'd be more famous than we knew. And he was right."

            Now that Foyet had escaped, the world was in danger again... but what Casey hadn't realized was that this would go on deeper than she thought.

hey, lovelies!
i honestly can't wait to come back to this in s5 lol
also yes i am skipping many episodes lmaooo
i hope you enjoyed this!

also
casey when she realizes foyet is the reaper: what😀

next chapter episode is — a shade of gray
thank you so much for reading!!!
i enjoyed writing this episode!

and also:
casey and reid are kinda giving me destiel from supernatural vibes idk if it's just me but yeah
-mya <3