Criminal Minds

It's raining in Seattle Washington, and Heather Woodland is sitting at her desk at work emailing back and forth with someone who has a vintage Datsun 240Z for sale. He's sent her a picture, and told her the car has new paint and new tires. She asks him why the price is so low, and he tells her he's moving and has to sell the car. He suggests he pick her up so they can go for a test drive. Heather huddles under her umbrella on the sidewalk as the car pulls up. The driver ushers her into the driver's seat and they drive through the rain, talking about the car's features. After they look under the hood, the driver opens the passenger door for her, but as he closes it, he removes the lock button from the door and pockets it.
Heather points out the turn to take her back to her office, but the driver misses it. Heather begins to get nervous as the driver now stares straight ahead and refuses to respond to her. She tells him to stop the car, and reaches for the lock button, but it isn't there. She lunges for the door handle, but the driver hits her across the face.
In their home in Washington, DC, FBI BAU Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner is putting together a crib while he and his wife, Haley, try to pick out baby names. All of Haley's reasonable suggestions are shot down by Hotchner, who picks out names like "Sergio" and "Hans." Finally, Haley asks her husband what he thinks of "Gideon." Hotchner laughs and kisses her, telling her no over and over again. The phone rings, interrupting their romantic moment, and Hotchner receives a fax of the missing girl from Seattle, Heather Woodland.
Supervisory Special Agent Derek Morgan is having a few beers with some female cadets, and quizzing them on cases from the past. The last question is about The Mad Bomber, George Metesky, and one cadet points out that Metesky was not a serial killer. Morgan tells her that the BAU handles more than just serial killers, "trust me, we cover the whole spectrum of psychos." When Morgan receives a call on his cell phone from the BAU, another cadet asks him if he works with Gideon, and if he was with him in Boston. Morgan replies, "I was supposed to be."
Senior Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon is in the middle of a Behavior Analysis Training lecture at the FBI Academy at Quantico, Virginia, discussing bodies found along wooded paths in rural Virginia. Photos of the victims, who have pictures of themselves placed on their foreheads, flash by on a screen behind him. Virginia newspapers are calling the criminal the Footpath Killer, but Gideon explains that he should be referred to as the "unsub" or "unknown subject." He describes the detailed profile that he gave to the police, including the fact that the unsub is a white male in his twenties who owns an American made truck in disrepair, works a menial job and has a severe stutter. This killer couldn't charm people into his car like Ted Bundy, because he's ashamed of something. A thin young man enters his lecture hall and holds up a BAU file, getting Gideon's attention.
Immediately excusing himself, Gideon follows Supervisory Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid into the hallway to discuss the case of the "Seattle Strangler" who has taken four victims in four months. Seattle police have no tangible leads and now another girl is missing. Gideon takes Reid into his office and offers to look the case file over and get some thoughts to Reid quickly, but Hotchner and Morgan walk in and announce that they need Gideon to go with the team to Seattle. Heather Woodland had downloaded a virus with her last emails from the unsub, and it left a message on her computer screen reading "For heavens sake catch me before I kill more I cannot control myself." Gideon turns to look at a framed photo in his office showing the same words written on a wall in a victim's home – written by killer William Heirens in 1945. The Seattle Strangler never keeps his victims for over seven days, so they only have 36 hours to find Heather alive. Reid comments, "It looks like medical leave's over, boss." When Gideon asks if they're sure they want him on the case, Hotchner tells him the order came from the Director himself. "Then we'd better get started," Gideon responds.
As the agents' cars pull up to a small jet waiting on the runway, Gideon's voice is heard reading a quote by Joseph Conrad: "The belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary; men alone are quite capable of every wickedness." Hotchner walks towards the plane with an FBI Assistant Director, who tells him they want an assessment of Gideon, and they want Hotchner to step in if Gideon cannot perform. On the plane the four men discuss the case. The killer stabbed and strangled his first victim. Gideon asks Reid, in the manner of a teacher asking a student, why the unsub began using a belt to strangle his second victim, and Reid replies that he probably found out how difficult it is to strangle someone with your bare hands. The killer learns as he goes, and is perfecting his methods to become a better killer.
Heather Woodland lies gagged in a wire cage in a room with one bare light bulb overhead. She reaches up to pull at the duct tape that covers her eyes, but a voice from the darkness reminds her she was warned not to touch the tape. He bangs on the cage and begins to open the chain on the door as she begs for mercy. He reaches in for one of her hands as she screams and cries, and carefully clips her bloody fingernails.
Gideon, Hotchner, Morgan and Reid arrive at the FBI Northwest Field Office in Seattle, and Morgan pulls Reid aside as they go through the metal detectors to discuss Gideon. Morgan is concerned because Gideon never stands with his back to a window, and asked Morgan to move when he was between him and the door. Reid is not surprised, as these are signs of hyper-vigilance, a symptom of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Hotchner, coming up behind the two, reminds Morgan it has been six months and everything is okay. Hotchner introduces the BAU to the agents in the Seattle office. He introduces Morgan as a specialist in obsessional crimes, and Reid – Gideon reminds him it is Dr. Reid – as an expert in everything. Hotchner himself spent two years in the Seattle office. The team immediately begins examining the evidence that is displayed on boards nearby. Gideon notes that the unsub is willing to move the bodies, so he must drive a truck or an SUV large enough to conceal one. They discuss what type of car, and who owns it, settling on a Jeep Cherokee as it is considered the most masculine choice and unsubs want to display their masculinity. The team concludes that the unsub has a knowledge of law enforcement.
Gideon and Morgan head out to the crime scene where the last victim was found – a dank, dirty area under a bridge. A Seattle policeman stands with Morgan as he watches Gideon survey the area, and wonders about the stories he's heard about Gideon bringing down the bomber, Adrian Bale, in Boston. Morgan confirms that Gideon was responsible, but that catching Bale had a high cost – six agents were killed. The body of the young girl was found with her nails clipped so that she could fight back but not hurt the unsub. He also left the belt around her neck. Gideon theorizes that the unsub is in his early twenties because the signs tell him he is youthfully arrogant. Although the killer clothed the body before dumping it – which is usually a sign of remorse – he obviously had no regard for the victims since he treated the bodies like garbage.
Hotchner and Reid are met at Heather Woodland's apartment by Heather's brother, David. Heather's dog barks at Reid, startling him, and Hotchner explains that dogs and children don't like Dr. Reid, calling it "The Reid Effect." David comments that Reid looks too young to have gone to medical school and Reid tells him they are three PhDs, not a medical degree. When David asks if he is a genius, Reid responds, "I don't think that intelligence can be accurately quantified, but I do have an IQ of 187, an eidetic memory, and can read 20,000 words per minute." Seeing that the two men are staring at him he adds, "Yes, I'm a genius." Reid finds car magazines about vintage Datsuns on Heather's table, and he tells Hotchner that there is an immediate relationship established between a buyer and a seller, and a level of trust. Posing as a car seller the unsub would have easily been able to coax her into his car.
Back at the office, the four profilers discuss the case. The clues are leading them in two different directions and they cannot seem to nail down the profile. There are behaviors that belong to a paranoid psychotic, but other behaviors that aren't paranoid. Gideon stands staring at a map of the area, letting the words of the other behaviorists wash over him until suddenly he stops them, and tells Hotchner they are ready to give the profile. Gideon walks out of the conference room. Morgan appeals to Reid, "Are you good with this? We've got a woman who's got a few hours left to live, an incomplete profile and a Unit Chief on the verge of a nervous breakdown." Gideon re-enters the room in time to hear about his "breakdown" and corrects Morgan. "They don't call them nervous breakdowns anymore." "It's called a major depressive episode," adds Reid.
The other agents stand in the background as Gideon presents the profile to local law enforcement and Seattle FBI. He identifies the unknown subject as a white male in his late twenties, someone who blends in to any crowd, with a previous criminal record. He is organized, psychopathic, not psychotic, and smart. The killer also rapes his victims, but it is rape without penetration so he is likely impotent. He has a history of paranoia stemming from a childhood trauma. Organized killers have a fascination with law enforcement so he will inject himself into the investigation. Gideon is sure that the police have already interviewed this man.
A young woman walks down a suburban street, approaching the Slessman home. She knocks, and tells the elderly Mrs. Slessman that she is house sitting down the street and came home to find the door ajar and the electricity out. She wonders if there is someone there who can walk down to the house with her to make sure no one is inside. Mrs. Slessman calls her grandson, Richard, to help her. Richard walks into the darkened home with the young woman following. As he enters the living room, agents appear with guns pointed at him, telling him to freeze, and the young woman pushes him down onto the floor and handcuffs him, telling him he's under arrest for murder. Gideon walks slowly into the room and Slessman smiles as he sees him.
"Emerson said, 'All is riddle, and the key to a riddle, is another riddle.'"
The agents are now looking through Slessman's home. Reid tells Gideon there is no sign of the girl in the home, so they will not be able to hold Slessman long. The "young woman" is revealed to be Special Agent Elle Greenaway, who tells Gideon that Richard's mother died in a fire when Richard was 13. Fire starting was probably something Richard did often when he was a child, as many serial killers before him. Greenaway tells Gideon it was her idea to lure Richard out of the home, since she never sends SWAT into a home with children. Gideon asks Greenaway for her thoughts, as her background is in sex-offender cases. She tells him that the unsub is an "anger-excitation" rapist, and probably records or videotapes his crimes. She agrees to allow Hotchner to interview Richard, and Gideon tells her to hold off as Richard knows the system and will ask for a lawyer immediately. As he walks off, Greenaway tells Morgan that she wants the open spot that's available at the BAU. Morgan's advice to her is to trust her instincts.
Hotchner pulls up the garage door to reveal a Jeep Cherokee. "Well, we got the Jeep right," he sighs. "And everything else wrong," adds Gideon. Richard doesn't have a mark on him, so he can't be the one the victims had been fighting with. Morgan examines Richard's bedroom, and feels that something isn't right. Two police officers have found Richard's computer, and a note with a password under it. Before Morgan can stop them they've entered the password and the computer screen locks up. It was a false password and the computer won't respond. Greenaway makes her way up to the attic where Reid, Hotchner and Gideon are examining the area. A board game sits on a table in front of a television. Reid identifies it as "Go" the most difficult game ever conceived, and he can tell that Slessman was playing himself. This may be helpful as there are various specific profiles for types of Go players. By examining the board Reid can tell that Slessman sees himself as an "Extreme Aggressor."
Back in Slessman's bedroom, Morgan has restarted Slessman's laptop, which shows a Deadbolt Defense system – a password is needed, and the user has only 6 tries to get the password right before the system wipes the hard drive. Gideon pulls a book off of a shelf – it is the Journal of Applied Criminal Psychology containing one of his articles. Inside the volume is a newspaper clipping from the Boston Sentinel with a story and picture about Gideon and the Adrian Bale case. The headline reads, "Shrapnel Blast Kills Six." He goes down to the kitchen to talk to Slessman.
Gideon sits across the kitchen table from Slessman and asks him if he's a fan of Adrian Bale's work. Slessman says he is a fan of Gideon's. Leaning closer, Slessman says, "You know, they never give you the real facts about CPR. That outside of a hospital it's only effective 7% of the time. Your friend had a 93% certainty of dying, but you kept trying, even after you'd broken his ribs, even after his blood was all over your hands." Slessman denies knowing where Heather Woodland is. Gideon tells the officers to take Slessman in and walks out of the kitchen to find Hotchner standing outside the doorway listening.
Hotchner walks behind the house to find Gideon, who is clearly disturbed by what Slessman said. He believes Heather is alive, as Slessman referred to her in the present tense. Hotchner wants to know if Gideon is okay, as he's trying very hard to hold it together. "I don't think you can be two different people at once," Hotchner tells Gideon. Struck with the thought, Gideon smiles, realizing what has been wrong with the profile. The two different behaviors are because there are two different people – there's a second killer. Gideon, Hotchner and Greenaway talk it out walking through the FBI building – Slessman is clearly the submissive personality to the stronger unsub's. "He's like the schoolyard bully recruiting a good underling; he'll be protective of Richard and make him feel like he owes him." They need to identify the other man, and fast.
Morgan calls FBI Analyst Penelope Garcia, at Quantico, for technical help with Slessman's computer. He tells her about the Deadbolt Defense and she responds that it is the number one password crack resistant software and Morgan will have to get "inside this guy's head" to get the password.
Hotchner interviews Richard's grandmother, asking her about special friends of her grandson. She remembers a man named Charlie – Charles Linder – Slessman's former cellmate at Cascadia Prison. Greenaway and Gideon head off to the prison.
Role playing in Slessman's bedroom, Morgan finds a prescription for sleeping pills, and wonders what Slessman does to relax. He pulls a pair of headphones from above the bed, and pile of CD cases. On a rack by the door are dozens of other CDs, and Morgan calls for other uniformed officers to help him look through them, examining them for signs of wear and tear to determine which ones Slessman listens to the most.
At the FBI offices Reid is waiting for a fax to reveal Charles Linder's current address when Hotchner walks past. Reid stops him, asking if the FBI Director's Office wants a field assessment of Gideon. Hotchner assures him that everything is okay, but Reid persists. As Hotchner walks away, Reid questions him again, asking if Hotchner knows why Gideon insists on introducing him as Dr. Reid. "Because he knows people see you as a kid and he wants to make sure that they respect you." When the fax finally comes through, they find out that Linder is dead.
"Winston Churchill said, 'The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you will see.'"
At Cascadia Prison, Gideon and Greenaway ask the warden who they can interview about Slessman. The warden suggests they talk to Timothy Vogel, the guard who worked Slessman's block. Vogel walks the agents out of the prison, unlocking the security doors for them. He tells them that Linder was "scum" and caused a lot of trouble in prison. He tells them that half of the guard's job is protecting the inmates from each other. When Gideon asks if he protected him, Vogel responds, "A puny little white guy? Especially in a prison like this?" Gideon is confused – Linder was 6'4" – who was Vogel talking about? Slessman? When Vogel admits it, Gideon and Greenaway leave the prison to wait for Vogel to drive away so they can follow him. Vogel must have befriended Slessman in prison. They have also noticed Vogel's keys – his key chain is a stylized letter "Z" to go with his vintage Datsun.
The orange Datsun drives away from the prison with Gideon and Greenaway following. Now that Hotchner has the name, he sets up the interrogation of Slessman: he turns down the heat to put the suspect on edge, and asks agents for file boxes with Vogel's name on the outside. Entering the interrogation room, he bangs the file boxes down on the table and slides one across to Slessman so he can read the name. He tells Slessman they only want Vogel.
Reid sits on Slessman's bed amidst piles of empty CD cases, twirling a CD between his fingers and staring into space. Now holding a paper clip, he enters the attic room where Morgan is pacing and trying to figure out the password. Reid crouches down next to the laptop and unbends the paper clip, telling Morgan he's been thinking about the CDs. Even though they've been through them all, Reid believes they've missed the obvious. He uses the paper clip to open the CD tray on the laptop and pulls out a Metallica CD. There was one empty CD case, and the CD had to be somewhere. Now they have to figure out which song could be Slessman's password. "I'm a heavy metal fan who listens to Metallica to go to sleep at night, what song could possibly speak to me?" asks Morgan. "Enter Sandman," replies Reid.
Hotchner explains the car salesman's philosophy of "reciprocity;" they drop the price and the buyer feels obligated to do something for them. The same thing applies to Vogel's relationship with Slessman. Vogel did Slessman a favor and now Richard feels a need to protect him. Vogel's got Slessman convinced that he owes him so much he'll go to jail for him.
On the road, Greenaway wants to pull Vogel over because something doesn't feel right. When they left him he was nervous, but now his behavior has changed. He's stopping at every red light and going the speed limit. "This is not someone who is rushing to kill and dump a body." Gideon agrees and they pull him over. Getting him out of the car, they realize that it isn't Vogel driving. It is another guard who swapped vehicles with Vogel at the prison. Vogel is now driving a Dodge Dakota. As they speed off to find him, Gideon gets a call from Morgan – Heather is alive. He and Reid are watching a live video-feed of Heather on Slessman's laptop. Gideon calls Hotchner and tells him that Vogel is on his way to kill Heather. It's up to Hotchner to get the location out of Slessman. "Find something, Hotch, or that girl is dead."
Reid asks Morgan to put the last twelve images of Heather up next to each other on the screen. He points out that the bare light bulb above her cage appears to be moving – swinging. Morgan quickly calls Hotchner to tell him Heather is on a boat at a dock or a pier; he wouldn't be able to send the images from the middle of the ocean. Finding out the actual location is on Hotchner. Morgan asks him exactly what he always asks Garcia to do: "Work me a little magic."
Hotchner tells Slessman that Gideon is interrogating Vogel, and that Vogel is telling him it was all Slessman's idea, even keeping the girls on a boat was Slessman's idea. Slessman, hearing that one kernel of the truth, begins to believe him. He admits that Heather is at Allied Shipyard.
Greenaway and Gideon pull up quietly to search the shipyard for Vogel's boat. Meanwhile, Reid and Morgan can see that Vogel is inside the room with Heather, unlocking the cage. Morgan calls Greenaway and tells her to wait for backup. "If we'd waited in Boston," he begins, but she cuts him off and tells him if she waits, Heather will die. "You told me to trust my instincts." Heather kicks Vogel as he opens the cage door and tries to run, pulling the tape from her eyes and mouth and screaming. She makes her way outside to the dock before Vogel catches up with her. Heather's screams have alerted Gideon and Greenaway, who approach from in front and behind. Vogel holds Heather in front of him as a shield as Gideon yells, "Stop!" He encourages Vogel to point the gun at him, not the girl. Gideon taunts Vogel, calling him a lousy shot, as Greenaway gets into position for a clean shot. Gideon opens his arms, making himself an easy target, telling Vogel he knows everything about him. He mocks Vogel, telling him he's impotent and wondering what the girls called him in high school when he tried to have sex with them. "Short stack? Very little Vogel? No, I've got it – Tiny Tim!" Vogel screams and drops the girl, shooting Gideon in the arm. Greenaway shoots Vogel multiple times before running to Gideon.
As the day breaks, Gideon comforts Heather who is being wheeled into an ambulance. Hotchner and Morgan are nearby, and Morgan asks Hotchner what kind of report the director is looking for about Gideon. Hotchner tells him there is concern about whether Gideon is ready for field work. He tells Morgan about Haley and her suggestion for naming their child "Gideon" and asks him if he knows what it means in Hebrew. Reid walks up with the immediate answer: "Mighty warrior. Appropriate." Hotchner asks Morgan what he would tell the director. "Gideon saved her life," Morgan answers, "that's good enough for me."
The BAU jet flies back towards Quantico, Virginia. Morgan and Reid are sleeping, and Hotchner sits down next to Gideon. Hotchner tells Gideon that, practically every name that Haley picks out for the baby has been the first name of a past serial killer – Charles, Henry, Jeffrey. Hotchner brushes aside Gideon's question about his report to the director, he just says, "You saved that girl today. You can feel good about that."
"Nietzsche once said, 'When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks into you.'"
In Dumfries, Virginia, Gideon pulls into a rural gas station to fill up. He notices an old American made pick up truck outside as he walks in and picks up a candy bar. Behind the register he notices dozens of Polaroid pictures of people with the label "Happy Customers." The young man who rings up his bill has a severe stutter. It all adds up. The young man notices the gun on Gideon's hip and follows him out of the station with a shotgun.

[recap written by Finnegan77]