Criminal Minds

The episode opens in Washington, D.C., with prostitutes talking to men in cars in the red light district.



Segue to flashes of a computer screen.



Someone is typing and writing angrily about prostitutes: "We must terminate."



Night turns to day, and one of the prostitutes is being strangled in an alley cluttered with litter on the ground with dumpsters nearby.



The scene is shown from above through floorboards and partially from the side of the prone woman. Her attacker is wearing black gloves and dark clothes. He strikes her and stabs her in her chest with a knife, after which he hacks off her long blonde hair. He leaves her lying on the ground.



At the Metro station, Reid is on his way to work, going up the stairs holding a cup of coffee. A young boy who had attended his lecture on sexual sadism where he'd described how he had helped catch the Mill Creek Killer in St. Louis approaches him.



Reid tells the man he seems a little young man to go to Georgetown. The boy explains he's still in high school, but reads a lot of real-crime novels and is interested in the subject. He asks about prostitutes, and Reid tells him they are the #1 target of serial killers. The boy asks if that is for sex or do the killers think they're dirty and need to be punished. And what would it mean if someone stabbed them and cut off their hair? Reid eyes him for a moment, then says, "I've never heard of such a case." Reid invites him to come along with him to the BAU. The boy hesitates, and when Reid asks him for his name and number so he can contact him later, he runs away.



Reid rushes into the BAU office and asks JJ about her contact at the D.C. police. He calls him and shows his sketch of the boy to Gideon. After he receives more information to report to Gideon, Reid says, "DC may have a serial killer and I just let him get away."



T.S. Eliot wrote, "Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act, falls the shadow."



The boy is now in school, praying.



The team is at the coroner's officer where a second victim is lying on the table. Detective Barnes reveals the woman's stomach where the word "HELP" had been carved. The cuts are shallow and indicate hesitation that indicates he wasn't sure about killing his victim. Is this a message to the police from the killer? Detective Barnes tells them the first victim had been found three months ago, but the coroner was most likely too disturbed by the carving to link the two murders together. But both victims had been killed early in the morning, and both had their hair cut off. There had been no witnesses because people in that area of the city go out of their way not to look.



Then Morgan and Prentiss then return to the area where the victim had been found to talk to two prostitutes. They tell Prentiss at night they want to be seen, but during the day people pretend they're not there. They also tell her people from Capitol Hill often stop by on their way to work in the morning. Morgan shows Reid's drawing to them. Although they recognize him, they don't know his name and he's just a kid watching them, and they think he's harmless. One of the girls tells Prentiss she is 21, then corrects herself to say she is 19. Prentiss doesn't believe this, but warns them to be careful. Morgan and Prentiss leave.



Hotchner is talking to Congresswoman Karen Steyer in his office. She admonishes him that if his team stays on the case, he is not to publicize the murder. She also tells him he can't stay on the case without an invitation from local law enforcement. She explains she had introduced a bill six months earlier declaring crime in DC was epidemic. Aware of the bill, Hotchner summarizes what he knows: "You target prostitution and drug use, petty crime and overall crime rate goes down." The Congresswoman says that is exactly what she is talking about, and she likes to keep those numbers down. Hotchner replies, "I understand that, but by not alerting the media we are putting women at risk." She tells him to catch their killer, but do it quietly. Otherwise, he won't work it at all. Using feigned subtlety, she continues to try to force him into complying by saying he is the kind of person who could run the bureau someday and that has as much to do with politics as with law enforcement. After she leaves his office, Hotch sees Prentiss hugging the Congresswoman indicating they are friends.



Garcia and Reid are trying to find the boy. Garcia tells Reid to 'think like a high school kid.' Reid points out that he skipped a few s and was still pretty young when he was in high school. But he remembers the boy had worn a lambswool coat that looked tailored, which meant money and, most likely, a private school. The boy had mentioned Northwest, so Garcia pulls up school records on her computer. She finds three private schools in that area. Only one of the schools has electives at Georgetown. Garcia then pulls up the sophomore photographs, telling Reid a boy would probably lie about his age to an authority figure, and Reid recognizes the boy as Nathan Harris.



Nathan is seen typing on his laptop and listening to loud music when the doorbell rings. His mother answers the door and sees Gideon standing there, who tells her that her son had spoken with Reid. Nathan joins them and confirms the conversation. And he tells his mother he wants to speak with them alone. They walk into his bedroom and Morgan turns off his blaring stereo. Nathan tells Reid he knew that if he was good enough, he could have found him. Morgan asks if he wanted to be caught, as Reid takes a look at the laptop screen. Nathan tries to prevent Reid from reading what is written on the screen, and then says he is writing a graphic novel. Morgan points out that Nathan knew facts about a murder that had not been publicized yet. Nathan replies, "But I didn't kill her. I just really wanted to."



Nathan is taken to the BAU office and the team begins to interrogate him. Nathan says he'd seen the body and that is how he knew the details of the murder. He tells them he often stays out all night and sometimes ends up in that neighborhood.



Nathan's mother, who is a doctor, is called to the office and Gideon discusses her son with her. She says having dark thoughts and being a killer is different. She says he is a good boy and is exceptionally bright. He just lives in his head more than other kids. She also tells Gideon his father had died when Nathan was 9, but they got through it together and they are very close. Gideon learns she is also very busy with her work, she teaches, and is on call at the hospital.



Morgan talks to Nathan: "The prostitutes we talked to said you watch them, did you want to have sex with them?" Nathan replies, "I never touch them, I told you. I want to KILL them."



He tells them he saw Reid at the lecture and at the metro, and he thought, hoped, Reid could help him. "I saw that body and I felt excited, and that really scared me." They ask him why he ran. He explains he thought they would say he was crazy and there was no way to stop him.



Morgan and Reid join Gideon and Dr. Harris. "Ma'am, we would like to have the juvenile authorities hold him overnight so we can do a psychological evaluation." She says she finds it hard to believe there is something wrong with her son, but she gives them permission to evaluate him. Reid tells her he believes her.



Morgan tells Prentiss he doesn't yet know if Nathan is the unsub, but a part of a sexual sadist's profile is that he can mimic sincerity.



Meanwhile, Nathan fanta about having sex with a prostitute and then stabbing her. When they pass Reid as they turn him over to the police, Nathan asks Reid to promise he will tell him the truth, no matter the outcome of his psych eval.



Garcia tells Reid the boy might have killed two women, and it's not his job to hold his hand through this. Reid explains it was similar with his mother, and he thought that, if he knew everything there was to know about schizophrenia, he would be able to fix her. Garcia understands. "You can't. I'm sorry." Morgan interrupts and tells them to meet in the conference room to profile the unsub.



They try to determine why the unsub had chopped off the hair. He hadn't taken it with him, so it's not a trophy and probably is a way to rob them of some of their power, some of their femininity. And prostitutes have the least sexual power during the early morning.



Prentiss points out the profile points to Nathan Harris. Hotchner tells the team he wants to forget about Harris. They have him, but he wants a profile in case it's not him. The unsub is stabbing his victims, indicating he's probably impotent. The fact that he chops off their hair and operates early in the morning indicates the unsub feels powerless. It could be more than sexual; he could feel impotent in his professional life. If that is indeed the case, he is killing prostitutes because that's easy access.



Prentiss returns to the street in the morning to ask some prostitutes if they know someone who fits the description.



In the office, JJ asks Hotch if they should call the press, but he replies curtly, "No."



On the street, a prostitute can't find her friend Holly, so she calls her cell phone and hears the other phone ring. She follows the sound of the ring into an alley. She finds her lying dead with the word "FAILURE" carved onto her stomach and her hair has been cut off. It's one of the prostitutes the team talked to earlier, Holly, and her identification says she was only 16. Reid says the unsub is getting angrier, not cooling off between kills anymore. They will be looking at a whole lot of bodies. Hotch utters that meanwhile Congresswoman Steyer will declare Washington crime-free in three days. Prentiss asks what she wanted with him anyway, and he replies curtly that it was a private conversation.



Well, they know Nathan is not their unsub since the last murder was committed while he was locked up. Prentiss wants to know if they should call Gideon to cancel the eval, but Reid finds Nathan has the right to understand what's going on.



The evaluation begins. There is a lawyer in the room with Gideon and Nathan to make sure they don't talk about the case and to protect Nathan. Nathan confirms to Gideon he had read "Warning Signs of Psychopathy by Dr. Harris," and then asks if that is wrong. Gideon replies, "No, it's healthy, you're intellectually curious." Nathan says he killed a bird once because he was sad and it makes him feel better after. Gideon asks him why. He explains that it's because it was dead and he was still alive. He tells Gideon he is worried because he wants to hurt women too.



Gideon asks him, "Have you ever seen a woman naked?" Nathan glances at the lawyer and Gideon reassures him, "Don't worry about him, no offense," to which the lawyer replies, "None taken." Nathan tells Gideon that a few years ago, there were cadavers for the med students at his mother's work. It made him feel both excited and sick to see them. "But now the 'dead' part is the only thing I think about." Gideon asks him if, when he watches the prostitutes, he thinks about having sex with them. Nathan denies that. "No. I think about cutting them." Gideon doesn't even blink when he asks him why. Nathan replies he doesn't know… maybe it's to look inside or something, feeling their blood on his hands, feeling it flow through his fingers. And yes, it does make him climax. Nathan says he knows he's crazy. Gideon asks, "Did I say that?" Nathan looks up at him. "No. But you've got pictures in your head that you can't make go away."



The evaluation is completed and Nathan hugs his mother outside and leaves. After that, his mother discusses the evaluation with Gideon. He tells her Nathan should be hospitalized because he's having homicidal fantasies. Nathan's mother argues with Gideon, and says she will make sure he sees someone every single day but she will not lock him away. Gideon watches her leave without saying anything.



In his office, Hotch has a talk with Prentiss. He tells her, "I don't appreciate being questioned in front of other agents." Prentiss explains Steyer had worked with her mother, and she had stopped by to say hello to her. Hotchner asks her if she had tipped her off about this case. Prentiss becomes offended and denies it. Hotch continues his upbraiding, "This team can't function if I don't trust the people on it." Prentiss becomes agitated and points out she doesn't deserve this. Hotchner declares, "You mysteriously showed up after one of my agents was involved in a questionable shooting. You've done good work, but I will not put up with a political agenda." Prentiss replies, "My mother is a career politician. You've worked with her; did you like her?" Hotch answers she's an impressive woman. Prentiss comments she thinks politics makes people distrustful and it makes them hate themselves. It tears families apart and damages people. She finishes with, "If there's nothing else, I'd like to get back on the street and find out who's killing these women."



Reid asks Gideon about the results of Nathan's psych eval. Gideon gives him a vague answer, "It's not an exact science". But Reid presses on. "Then what's your professional opinion?" Gideon responds, "It's not a question of if he ends up killing someone; it's when."



Nathan's mother knocks on her son's door, but he's not there. She enters his room and goes through his things, and finds disturbing collages on his desk.



Morgan and Reid go looking for Nathan; driving through the part of the city the prostitutes are murdered. Morgan tells Reid it's not his responsibility, but Reid says that in a way it is. "He knows I understand him." Morgan points out he is a profiler. Reid explains it is more. "I know what it's like to be afraid of your own mind." Then they change the subject by joking about Hotch being uptight. Morgan gets a call, and tells Reid they just found a body.



The victim had been killed in a more public place this time. If it's the same unsub, there is no chopped off hair, this kill was at night, and it was messy. None of it has his signature. It could be Nathan.



They find Nathan sitting in a church, and he tells them he's been there for four hours. Reid questions him. "Has anyone seen you?" Nathan asks him if that matters. Reid tells him a woman had been stabbed a few blocks away, and he is going to have to bring him in as a suspect. Nathan sighs, "I've been sitting here all night, thinking. The only way to save people's lives in the future is to kill myself."



Back at the BAU, Nathan is in custody. It's possible he did it. But Gideon doesn't think so. He believes Nathan's kill would have been very efficient, getting more efficient with every next one, not getting sloppier.



So they go back to profiling the unsub:



First kill - he got a taste for it.

Second kill - he sent a message: help stop me.

Third kill - he sent a message: you failed me.

Fourth kill - no ritual, no message just a brutal murder.



Gideon disagrees. "He's devolving, but he did have a message. He left her in a busy public place." It was a message to the Congresswoman.



JJ points out the press conference hadn't been announced yet, and only someone with inside information would know that. "He feels impotent in his job. He might have tried to get rid of prostitutes before."



Prentiss says that from the interviews she held she got a few descriptions that could be same man, but no one recognized him on mug shots. So they go back to the prostitutes. Hotchner says he needs to get message to Steyer, and asks JJ is she can put up a press conference. She smiles and asks him how fast does he needs it.



Outside FBI headquarters, Hotch briefs the press and tells them the Congresswoman will announce the crime rate is down, but he also tells them about the serial killer. "Police and FBI we are working tirelessly on this case." JJ takes over the press conference, and urges the women working on the streets to be very careful. She also gives a description of their unsub: He works on or around Capitol Hill, either in research or for an advocacy group that deals with crime and prevention.



Reid asks Garcia to look for such groups, preferably lower on the food chain and high on morality/values. Garcia mutters something about a needle and a haystack.



Steyer visits Hotchner in his office. "You could have done that much more quietly." He tells her there are some people he'd like for her to meet. He takes her to a room with a group of women who all describe similar experiences with the same man. After making a denigrating remark about her audience, she apologizes. The women tell her the unsub is a man who is tall, bald, and has sad eyes. He always wears turtlenecks and a long dark coat, and he looks like a mortician. He just wants to watch, but then starts screaming at them, saying they are low woman. His voice gets a high nasal quality when he screams.



Steyer says this does not sound like anyone she knows. Reid then reads a list of the groups that have lobbied on her behalf.: Decency Watch is the one. The man who runs it, Ronald Weems, he's a nobody and Steyer states he fits the description perfectly.



And Ronald Weems is the one typing on the laptop. "It's our duty to put them down." He tells his wife he needs to get back to work, yes, again. Moments later, the team knocks on his door, his wife opens and tells them he just left and to come back in a few hours. They ask her, "Don't you want to know why we are here?" She tells them she's glad Ronald is helping them, but that she doesn't know anything about it. Morgan tells her they want to look in his office. She replies he doesn't allow anyone in there and shuts the door on them. They continue the conversation through the closed door, giving her facts, knowing she will recognize them. "In the last six months, has he started asking you to play out sexual fantasies and then it stopped? You were afraid to ask us why we were here. You're glad it stopped one month ago. You let him leave at odd hours because when he comes home it feels like the man you married again." She reopens the door, and shows them to his office where they find a wall filled with clippings and several files in cabinets. His wife admits she doesn't know where he went.



The team hits the streets immediately. They ask everyone: homeless persons, prostitutes, and everyone else on the street if they'd seen Ronald, showing them his photograph. Unknown to the team, he is walking close by and is wearing a cap. The people being questioned aren't cooperating, but the team knows he has to be there somewhere.



Ronald approaches a prostitute asking her 'how much.' She recognizes him from the photograph and blows a panic whistle that pierces the air. Someone maces him, and he is arrested. Ronald shouts, "They lied, they said they'd clean them off the streets. I had to do something."



Garcia brings Nathan to see Reid, and he apologizes for not being there when they released him. Nathan shrugs and tells Reid his mother is back at work. He then asks Reid some questions about the killer they caught. "Did he say how long he knew what he was? Can I talk to him?" Reid shakes is head and tells him he can't. But he tells Nathan he is not that killer. "Who we are is constantly evolving. I'm changing all the time. My job changes me. You've changed me. You sought me out to try and understand how not to harm people. That's a far more important part of who you are than the part that scares you."



Nathan tells Reid that his mother wants him go to a hospital for awhile. Reid says that might not be a bad idea. Nathan is afraid they won't let him out again. Reid tells him he can't know that yet. Nathan replies, "Well, I'm saying goodbye. She wants me to go tomorrow… my last night of freedom. Thanks for caring."



T.S. Elliott: Between the desire and the spasm, between the potency and the existence, between the ascent and the descent, falls the shadow. This is the way the world ends.



Nathan is out on his last night of freedom, and scares a prostitute by showing up beside her suddenly. He then tells her he's looking for a date and she takes accepts his offer.



Garcia tells Reid she wants to take him out to cheer him up. Reid replies gloomily that he doesn't feel as though he'd make the best company right now. But Garcia is insistent and teases him with, "Up! Don't make me hurt you!"



Nathan and the prostitute are in a motel room. She tells him to relax and it's okay, that he's just nervous. Nathan is disturbed and confused, "It's not right. It's not working." And then he gets angry. "Don't laugh at me! Don't touch me. You have no idea what I can do to you." She finally senses something bad might happen, and suggests they walk away, no charge. And then she sees he has a knife. "You don't want to do this." But Nathan contradicts her. "Yes I do."



In the parking lot, Garcia introduces Reid to her red vintage Cadillac convertible: "Have you met Esther?" But as they are about to enter the car, Reid's phone rings. He listens and then says "Stay where you are. I'm calling an ambulance." The prostitute had been the one who had called Reid. Nathan tried to commit suicide. Garcia and Reid try to save Nathan by applying pressure on the wounds on his wrists. Reid starts to panic, and when the paramedics arrive, they have to tell him a few times he can let go. Nathan had placed Reid's business card on the table in the form of a suicide note.



Gideon arrives on the scene and checks on Reid. He tells him Nathan wouldn't have made it without him. Reid laments Nathan wanted him to let him die. Gideon tells him, "Nathan's sick, he needs saving." But Reid wonders how many people's lives he did risk in the future. Gideon tells him profiles can be wrong, but Reid is still not sure. "What if it's not, what if next time he kills somebody?" Gideon looks up at him. "Then you catch him." And they walk away together.



[recap written by highwaykind and phf3947]