Criminal Minds

Miami, Florida. The night life is hot and the music is loud. It's time to dance, drink, meet people, and throw away your inhibitions. She looks across at the bartender and sees something she likes. She sips his drink, and slips a note into his hand. His eyes follow her as she walks away.

Quantico, Virginia. Garcia's lights are out and flipping the switch inside her front door has no result. She walks into the middle of the room, peering into the darkness. She jumps as Kevin Lynch lights a candle, and tells her that he has turned off the breakers. When she scolds him for scaring her, he comments that she scares too easily - she is under too much stress. Since she couldn't make it to dinner with him, he's brought dinner to her. He fingers a red, ripe strawberry and asks if she'd like to start with dessert. Kevin suggests that the two of them go on vacation together, to the "land of no keyboards." They kiss passionately.

In Miami, the bartender has followed the directions on her note, and met her on board her boat. She laughs even as she comments that her husband would kill them both if he found out. The bartender kisses her neck, her shoulders, and turns her around, fumbling with her dress. She looks out over the water and sees something bob to the surface. She stumbles backwards as she realizes it is a dead body.

In the BAU conference room, JJ identifies the dead man as Charles Luvet - there didn't appear to be any attempt to weigh the body down. He is the third victim to be found in Miami in the last two months. Even though the locations of the bodies are different, many aspects of the crime are the same: all of the victims were males, 25-35 years old, all traveling, and all asphyxiated with no other signs of assault. Some personal property is also missing from each victim. Rossi suggests that the killer is targeting travelers for a reason. The other agents look up as Garcia apologizes her way into the room, and Hotchner remarks that everyone is allowed to be late - once. Rossi goes on to mention the "red flag" in all of the autopsy reports - not one of the victims' hyoid bones were broken. This unsub was able to kill all of his victims - all grown men in good health - with no apparent struggle and without disturbing the hyoid bone. Morgan suggests that a choke hold was used, and Reid concurs; this would give the attacker a means of controlling these men. JJ goes on to relate where each victim was found: one in the water, one partially buried in sand, one in a dumpster. All of the men were found in high traffic areas, and not much of an effort was made to hide any of the bodies. The most disturbing piece of information is that there are four other men missing in the area who match the same victimology. Garcia will dig up everything she can on the victims. Since Miami is a vacation spot, it would be the perfect hunting ground for a killer targeting travelers. Charles Luvet was a member of the New Orleans Police Department.

"There are no secrets better kept than the secrets everybody guesses." George Bernard Shaw.

Rossi, Morgan, and Reid get out of their cars at the Miami police department, and Reid asks if it is always this hot in Miami. Watching two beautiful women walks past, Morgan comments, "Every day, all day." "That's South Beach," agrees Rossi, his eyes also on the women's rear ends. Detective Tina Lopez introduces herself, and she and Morgan make an immediate connection. As Det. Lopez struggles with all of the agents' names, Prentiss sees a familiar face in the parking lot. Det. Will LaMontagne, Jr., from New Orleans, has arrived to identify the body of Det. Charles Luvet - he and Det. Luvet had worked together for seven years. The team greets LaMontagne cordially, JJ seems especially nervous about his appearance. LaMontagne quickly informs Det. Lopez that the BAU helped him on a case about a year ago, and assures Hotchner that he is not in Miami to investigate, he just wants to know what happened to his friend. Det. Luvet was going to be married in August and, if the body pulled from the marina is Luvet, his fiancée is going to want some answers. Det. LaMontagne tells the team Det. Luvet was in town to meet with some college friends to race in a regatta. Rossi suggests that they track down the other men who were meeting Luvet there. Det. Lopez tells the team that there are no other potential witnesses: both other victims were traveling alone, and the unsub knew that.

Following Det. Lopez up the stairs, LaMontagne pulls JJ aside for a private word. He cannot believe that she still hasn't told her co-workers that they have been dating. "It's none of their business," JJ tells him. She doesn't tell them that she visits him every weekend because there is no privacy with this team - everyone knows everything about everyone - and she doesn't want them profiling her personal life. JJ awkwardly suggests they catch up with the others, but LaMontagne is hurt, and replies bitingly that she doesn't sound "awkward" as much as she sounds "ashamed" of their relationship.

Det. Lopez ushers Rossi and Prentiss into to a small room where the personal effects of one of the victims, Paul Hays, has been spread out on the table. She leaves them to sort through the effects and tells them that she'll take "Derek and the skinny kid" to the dumps sites. When she leaves, Prentiss and Rossi quip that the only name she managed to remember was Derek's. Rossi finds it odd that, although this victim had been in Miami for a week, he hadn't worn any of the suits he'd packed, and there were no business appointments in his PDA. He was wearing running clothes when he was killed, but his wedding ring was found in his hotel room.

When the coroner pulls back the sheet, Det. LaMontagne knows that his hopes for a misidentification were wrong. The dead man is indeed Det. Luvet. It is hard for JJ to see him going through this kind of pain, and she offers to help him with any arrangements - it is part of her job. LaMontagne excuses himself.

Pointing to a dumpster set very close to a popular beach, Det. Lopez tells Reid and Morgan that one of the bodies was found here. Reid believes that the victims knew the unsub - if they asked him for advice as to where to shop, eat, or run, and he gave them locations, he would have been able to kill his victims and dispose of their bodies quite quickly and easily.

Hotchner, JJ, and Det. LaMontagne conduct a search of Det. Luvet's hotel room. No one has been able to find the detectives gun or shield. Finding a copy of his rental car agreement, Hotchner states Det. Luvet left the hotel voluntarily or the valet would have notified them that the car was present. He calls Garcia to ask if the rental car company had installed a locator chip in the car. When Hotchner heads to the balcony to make the phone call, LaMontagne brushes up against JJ as he passes her, touching her back, and JJ jerks away, muttering "don't" under her breath. He pointedly tells her that, standing in his dead partner's room, he's really not in the mood. He finds a plastic ID bracelet with the number "11257" on it - probably for the regatta.

In Garcia's office, she and Kevin Lynch are practicing very bad Italian with each other when the phone rings. Garcia assures Hotchner that she should be able to track the rental car's location very quickly.

Reid, Morgan, and Det. Lopez have followed Garcia's directions to the rental car location in a small alley. Sharing the front seat, Morgan and Det. Lopez begin searching for clues. Morgan has the detective turn on the ignition so he can check the car's GPS's memory. He finds the last place on the list is 11257 Palmdale Drive, South Beach. Det. Lopez knows that location - a gay bar.

Hotchner, JJ, and Det. LaMontagne speak to the manager of the yacht club about Charles Luvet's regatta. There must be a mistake because their regatta is in September, and they would not use a plastic bracelet for participants: the entry fee is $10,000. Det. LaMontagne is confused - Det. Luvet always used his annual furlough to come to Miami for this regatta. Morgan calls to tell Hotchner about his findings. 11257 Palmdale Drive is a gay bar. Det. Luvet didn't come to Miami to race - he came for something else entirely. Hotchner knows the team will have to rethink victimology based on this new evidence.

Wearing a straw hat, Deacon Rogers leans against the bar at a hotel pool staring with fascination at a young man getting out of the water. Deacon cannot take his eyes off of the young man's physique, and nods as he realizes he is being watched. The young man approaches Deacon, toweling off, and warns the pale Texan with a slow Louisiana drawl that all of the sun exposure could kill him. Across the young man's back is a tattoo of a harpy and the word "VERITAS" in black-letter script. As Deacon twirls the pink umbrella from his drink, the swimmer introduces himself as a police officer from New Orleans. The two flirt for a moment, and then Deacon offers to buy the other man a drink, telling him that he's traveling alone. Deacon introduces himself, and the other man shakes his hand, telling Deacon that his name is Charlie Luvet.

JJ hands Prentiss a bottle of water and they both comment on the humidity. Glancing across the room at Det. LaMontagne, Prentiss says at least they have something fun to look at. JJ glances over and nervously sips from her water bottle, remarking that he might "have a thing." LaMontagne hands the case file to Hotchner, wondering how he didn't know his partner was gay. Hotchner tells him that Luvet apparently didn't want him to know. Luvet came to Miami to "be himself." He advises LaMontagne to tell Luvet's fiancée the truth.

Det. Lopez enters the squad room and calls for her men to pay attention as the BAU has a preliminary profile to share with the officers. JJ introduces Garcia, who begins with information about the four men who are missing. Two went missing on the same day a few months ago, and the third and fourth went missing within the past four weeks. The connection among the victims seems to be that they were gay men traveling alone. The unsub is killing roughly once a week, and may have already chosen his next victim. Prentiss tells the group that they need to track the movements of all of the victims, and that the other team members are already out in the community looking for leads. These victims may all have been attempting to meet other men. The unsub will be in his mid to late twenties, be familiar with the area, and may offer assistance to newcomers. He is charming, intelligent, and frequents or works at a gay establishment. He has some knowledge of defense tactics, so he might have been in the military. This may be a hate crime or the unsub may be struggling with his own sexuality.

In a gay bar, Deacon is singing along with the music, touching "Charlie's" face and whispering in his ear. "Charlie" seems caught between disgust and arousal, finally telling Deacon that he needs some air.

Outside the Miami Police Department, JJ comes upon Det. LaMontagne speaking to Det. Luvet's fiancée on his cell phone. She listens as the detective tells the woman that Luvet loved her very much. When he hangs up, JJ approaches him. JJ is on her way to the hotel to get some sleep and Det. LaMontagne wonders if she was going to say good night to him. He tells her that it is plain to see that she has "one foot out the door on this relationship," and JJ cautions him to keep his voice down. He doesn't care if people know about their relationship, but JJ is adamant that this is her business. Det. LaMontagne peppers her with questions, and she answers curtly that, no, she isn't ashamed, he hasn't offended her, she doesn't want to see other men, but when he asks if she wants to break up, she hesitates, almost saying yes. When he repeats his question, she says, "Yes." She doesn't want to have to fly to see him every weekend, and she knows that neither one of them would be willing to relocate. Det. LaMontagne interrupts her and asks when they had that conversation. He might be willing to give up his career and move to Quantico to be with her, but all he is looking for right now is an acknowledgment to her friends that they mean something to each other. JJ doesn't understand why that is important to him and Will shakes his head and wishes her good night. She calls after him, but he keeps walking.

Deacon and "Charlie" have also stepped outside into the steamy Miami night. Deacon, smoking marijuana, teases "Charlie" that he is a "bad boy," doing drugs in front of a cop. "Does that mean you're going to have to handcuff me, cause you can handcuff me if you want," postures Deacon. His flagrant flirtation seems to irritate "Charlie," and when Deacon kneels down in the street and begins loosening "Charlie's" belt, "Charlie" lashes out at him, knocking him to the ground. "You're disgusting - you're filthy!" "Charlie" screams but then immediately apologizes, putting his fake New Orleans accent back on and calling Deacon, "cher."

JJ has wandered back into the squad room with a question. She wonder aloud to Hotchner if the unsub is perhaps seeing a freedom in his victims that he wants for himself. All of these men came to Miami to openly pursue other men, and if the unsub is struggling with his sexuality, that might be very provocative to him.
Deacon picks himself up off the street, saying, "That really hurt," in his Texas drawl. "Charlie" repeats the phrase, mimicking Deacon's voice. When Deacon turns away, "Charlie" embraces him from behind, telling him how sorry he is.

"Charlie's" arms lock around Deacon's neck.

The next morning, Det. Lopez is just releasing Deacon's body to the coroner when the BAU team arrives at the crime scene. She found Luvet's police badge half a block away. Luvet's gun was not found. Leaving the body out in plain sight is off-pattern, but Det. Lopez tells the team that the killer was interrupted by a busboy from the bar. He explains he came outside to have a smoke and found the two men - the other man claimed to be a cop, and said that he and his friend had just been mugged. He took off, supposedly chasing after the muggers. The busboy can't identify him because it was too dark. Reid believes that the killer is impersonating his victims because of transference and Hotchner agrees: whatever he sees in his victims he wants for himself. "He hates who he is; he's targeting tourists because he sees them living a kind of lie, too." He may be suffering from Cluster B – a cluster of personality disorders. He may not just be living in his victims' skin – he may be living in their hotel rooms. Hotchner quickly asks the coroner to run the prints on the body so that they can identify the dead man and find out where he was staying.

Garcia has received the fingerprint information and has pulled up Deacon Rogers' rap sheet from Odessa, Texas. He has a few possession arrests, and one for lewd behavior and his credit card shows him staying at a South Beach motel. The officers arrive to find the hotel room door open and no one inside. The room is a mess; Deacon Rogers' possessions are strewn around as if Steven was looking for anything that would help him become the dead Texan. Morgan realizes that the killer is on survival mode now - he knows there is a witness who can identify him. He is trying to escape.

Driving his car and wearing his straw hat, the new "Deacon Rogers" cruises down the road singing along to the song on the radio – the same song that Deacon was singing in the gay bar the night before. He stops to pick up a young man who is hitchhiking. The sunburned young man speaks with a German accent, and "Deacon" asks him to repeat what he is saying, and then mimics his voice as he drives off.

Morgan and Reid stare at the case files of the missing men spread out on the bed in Deacon Rogers' hotel room. They know that the killer will want to switch identities sooner than usual because he is trying to escape detection - his pattern will need to change. Morgan remembers that there was another time that the unsub took two victims in one day - maybe the same thing happened that time. Maybe there is a witness out there that can identify the killer from the previous time the unsub took two victims in one day. The first victim went missing two months ago after taking a bus from Oakland Park, and he was never seen again - his name is Steven Fitzgerald.

The team heads to Oakland Park to interview the Fitzgerald family. Rossi and Hotchner speak with Steven's father, David. They describe the killer who possibly preyed on Steven and how he is targeting homosexual men traveling alone - they ask David if he can confirm that Steven is gay. David says that he was "confused" about his sexual orientation. He didn't have any friends in Miami, and David never saw or heard from him after he boarded the bus. Rossi is surprised by David's resigned attitude, but David explains that he believes that Steven is "in a better place." David claims he is a Christian, and gets his strength and guidance from the Lord. As a prison guard, David also relies on his skill and strength or else he would be in danger. Rossi comments that all prison personnel must take defense tactics lessons.

In the yard outside, Prentiss and Morgan discuss Steven with his sister, Sarah. Steven was supposed to call her when he got to Miami. She tearfully tells the agents when Steven got on the bus he was happy - it was the first time he'd smiled in years. She feels responsible.

David Fitzgerald claims his problems with Steven had nothing to do with his faith - his church teaches tolerance, and that God loves everyone despite their failings. He saw the homosexual acts performed in the prison, and describes them as filthy. He believed that Steven acted out sexually just to try to anger him. Rossi and Hotchner are appalled to learn Steven's father had felt he needed to save him from that life.

Sarah feels responsible for Steven's disappearance because it was her idea for him to go to Miami. She wanted him to go somewhere he felt safe. When Prentiss asks her what Steven needed to feel safe from, Sarah turns nervously and looks towards the house. She finally stammers that her father believed he was doing the right thing when he was hard on Steven. She knew Steven couldn't stay there, and she helped him get out. Her father never hurt Sarah, "because she's not the one who's gay," states Morgan.

Hotchner presses David Fitzgerald on his methods for saving Steven. David claims that he learned a lot about discipline from working in the prison system, and objects to Rossi's confrontational tone. Rossi berates Fitzgerald for using the same tactics on his son that he would use on hardened criminals, but David says that he was trying to teach Steven how to be a man. "You convinced him he was worthless, contemptible for being who he was, so he found a way to become someone else, anyone else." The two profilers realize that Steven isn't missing - he is the unsub.

Det. Lopez has tracked down Deacon Rogers' car, and has found the body of the German student inside. Reid explains Steven Fitzgerald may be their unsub, not the first victim. There is only one set of tire tracks leading to the crime scene, and no other set leading away. Prentiss is concerned the road leads out of the city - if they lose the trail it will take months to catch up with him again. Donning gloves, Morgan goes through the victims pockets and finds a receipt for a youth hostel in the name of Michael Aldridge. From his sunburn, Rossi can tell that the victim was hitchhiking, and Reid observes that the killer undoubtedly hitchhiked away from the scene to become Michael Aldridge. Det. Lopez describes a few hostels in the area and the team splits up to cover them.

A few hours later, Morgan and Det. Lopez have found the hostel that "Michael Aldridge" checked into. The hostel manager explains that he is in the day room - like a dormitory - full of kids. Lopez hurries towards the door, but Morgan tells her they should wait for the team. Lopez will not wait - "I've got a nut in a hostel full of kids." Morgan follows her inside. Once inside the large room, Morgan tells the two other officers to usher the kids outside. As young people begin to move out, Morgan and Lopez draw their weapons and ask for "Steven Fitzgerald." Sitting at a card table with his back turned towards the door, Steven slowly puts down his hand. Morgan and Lopez ask various kids for Steven, and, when they respond in the negative the two hurry the students outside. Steven reaches down and takes the backpack from the floor next to him and places it on his lap. The young man who sits across the table from Steven watches as Steven reaches one hand into the backpack. Morgan and Lopez tell the rest of the young people to go outside, and focus their attention completely on the back of the young man. Steven doesn't reply to any of their demands to "Steven," but when Morgan shouts out "Michael Aldridge," Steven turns around. Standing, clutching the backpack with one hand inside, Steven says that he hasn't done anything. Mimicking the German student's accent, he says that he is Michael and doesn't know Steven. Morgan insists that he knows Steven, and knows where he is. Michael becomes very agitated, spitting and yelling that Steven is stupid, disgusting and filthy. Morgan tells the boy that nothing is wrong with him. He slowly lowers his weapon and holsters it, keeping Steven's attention focused on him. He asks Steven if he remembers who Sarah is. He tells Steven that Sarah is worried about him, and loves him. Steven begins to calm, speaking in his own voice. "I didn't do anything wrong," whispers Steven, and Morgan agrees, telling him to put the bag down. Repeating that he did nothing wrong, Steven allows the bag to fall to the floor. Morgan gently handcuffs him. Steven makes Morgan promise to tell his father that he never did anything with those other guys and Morgan leads him out.

As Morgan puts Steven into the police car, Lopez stands nearby, holding the backpack. She shows him that Luvet's gun was in the pocket Steven had his hand in during Morgan's confrontation with the young man. After handing the backpack to another officer, she asks Morgan if he likes it there, in South Beach. Morgan suggestively responds, "What's not to like?" Lopez moves closer to him, telling him that she'd gladly show him the real South Beach sometime – mojitos, Cuban food, Brazilian jazz. She warmly tells him that she'll "take good care" of him and flounces off, Morgan watching her form.

Hotchner and the team arrive and Hotchner wants to know why Morgan didn't wait. Morgan claims it was his idea to storm the hostel - that he didn't think they had time to wait. Hotchner simply walks away.

Back at the Miami Police Department, JJ hands Det. LaMontagne a bag with Det. Luvet's shield and weapon inside. Det. LaMontagne is still upset that his partner didn't trust him enough to tell him that he was gay. "He was my friend and I loved him, and all I ever would have wanted was for him to be happy, you know?" He tells JJ to take care of herself and walks away. Prentiss steps up beside JJ as the two watch LaMontagne walk off. Whispering, she tells JJ, "You should go for him, you'd make a cute couple." JJ makes a decision and runs to Will. She explains that it wasn't all about traveling or relocating - she didn't want to tell anyone about their relationship because then it would "become real." She had always run from being hurt before, but now, she doesn't want to run anymore. He pulls her towards him, holding one hand behind her head, and kisses her passionately.

Prentiss, Reid, and Morgan look on, unaffected. "I thought she was never going to admit it," mutters Prentiss, and Reid and Morgan are also unmoved - the profilers have known about JJ's "little secret" for almost a year.

"If we knew each others' secrets, what comfort we would find." John Churton Collins

[Recap written by Finnegan77]