[CM] THE CASE

I could have endured the darkness if I hadn't seen the light. — Emily Dickenson

"The person disappeared in Las Vegas, and Morgan went to cooperate with you; Emily and I stayed at BAU, and the higher-ups were very concerned about this matter and promised to give us the greatest help." Hotch stood by the conference table, in front of It's a hands-free landline. Emily was sitting on his left, and opposite Garcia was holding a pen with a dignified expression.

On the other end of the phone, Reid and Gideon were in the hotel's surveillance room.They didn't avoid Rossi, and Rossi didn't avoid it.The retired detective and well-known author wears a low-key but luxurious tailored suit, which is as sharp and decisive as it is underneath.He is like a knife, the scabbard is full of craftsmanship, and the blade is shining with cold light.

"What information do we currently have?" Hotch asked.

"The hotel's surveillance records." Reid said, "the cleaner disappeared on the third floor, but 10 minutes later, a van drove out of the back alley."

"Retrieve the surveillance video and find this van." Hotch ordered, and JJ opened the door: "The local police promised us to fully cooperate."

"I want the surveillance video of all intersections within a three-kilometer radius." Hotch said to her, JJ nodded, turned around as he entered the room, and closed the door of the conference room again.

"The timing of the kidnapping was too coincidental," Gideon said. "They had already succeeded when Reid went out to buy dinner, and the timing was very precise. If it wasn't for Garcia's phone call, Reid might not have had the chance to pass by the kidnappers." The whole plan is watertight, such an efficient plan should not be finalized temporarily."

Emily frowned: "It's not temporary, is someone watching you all the time?"

"It's not 'you,' it's 'he,'" Reid said. "Garcia?"

"Griffith received two text messages from unknown sources." Garcia tapped on the laptop and turned on the screen to show them, "Although the two times were disposable mobile phones, the last signal was scattered, but they were all in the One area, which is near Griffith's home, has a high probability that the two text messages are from the same person."

"He's not in Vegas?" Emily asked. "Who was it that kidnapped Griffith?"

"Kidnapping requires the cooperation of at least two people, but stalking is a personal act. It can be seen from the two text messages that the person who has been monitoring him is eager to develop a private relationship with him, so the stalking must be one person." Reid said, "Strangely though, Griffith never received a gift from that person. Apart from these two text messages, he had very little direct contact."

"Maybe not." Gideon said, "This person may be someone Griffith sees every day. The employee at the coffee shop downstairs, the neighbor across the door, the cleaner in the corridor... If so, Griffith probably doesn't know about it. "

Hotch raised his eyebrows: "Check. Garcia, find out Griffith's social connections, as detailed as you want. Emily, you and I will go to Griffith's apartment. Reid, Gideon, you go to the room to see if there is anything missing .”

"Yes, sir."

The bread wasn't enough, and it didn't take long for Griffith to feel his stomach throbbing.His lips, which lacked moisture, were chapped and peeled. He subconsciously licked it, and tasted a bloody smell.The clothes on his body were still worn when he was sleeping, and he couldn't resist the cold at all. He tried his best to shrink himself into a ball, gritted his teeth and hit the wall.

The soft soundproof cotton didn't cause him any harm, and the people outside didn't feel it either.Under the influence of drugs, this is already the limit of Griffith.He lay on the ground panting for a long time, his nose touched a hard protrusion, like a button.

Since they were able to kidnap themselves and didn't forget to use drugs to control them, they must not be careless people.Either this button is useless, or it is specially prepared for yourself.

Griffith thought of this, and a trace of weirdness crept into his heart.

Strange, why are they so considerate?If you don't want to see your face, why not just cover your eyes?If you want to go blind, wouldn't it be more convenient to use a knife directly?According to his current feeling, apart from being weak all over, there is nothing abnormal, especially in the head.Unless, they have a reason to do so.

Had to do this...were they required?Are they hired?If so, who wants him?More specifically, who wants to have him unscathed?This kind of request must not be an enemy, so could it be... the person who sent the text message?

FBI agents don't just tie them up.Once an agent goes missing, the Bureau will definitely not let it go.If that person has the ability to hire people to kidnap FBI agents, it means that he is not only rich, but also powerful.This kind of power is not necessarily on the surface. Sometimes, the power that is unclear is even more frightening.

This kind of conjecture made Griffith feel chills, the car body bumped a bit, his nose hit the button hard, and after a while, he heard the sound of the small window panel being pulled open: "What are you doing?"

He struggled to prop up his body, his arms kept shaking, and he could only hum intermittently: "Water..."

The little window was closed.The people over there didn't know if they were discussing something, the car trembled and stopped.Someone opened the carriage, helped him up, placed him in the distance, held his hand, and touched a mineral water bottle.

The man actually wore gloves and said to him, "The dose of the second shot is not as large as the first one, and it will disappear in a few minutes. The water is here. If you need anything else, you can press the button just now."

Griffith nodded, a few guesses racing through his mind.

Wearing gloves means that his hands have obvious features and are afraid of being recognized.Such as burns, calluses, scars... who is he?

The man didn't give him time to think, he patted his head, locked the car, and continued to drive forward.

Morgan confronted Las Vegas police as soon as he got off the plane.He didn't talk nonsense, and immediately asked to join his colleagues.So at the entrance of the hotel, he met Rossi who came down to pick him up.

Rossi greeted him with a smile: "Hello."

Morgan didn't react immediately: "You, you are..."

"I'll talk about the politeness later, let's do business first." Rossi said businesslike, "I'll take you to the scene."

Reid stood in the doorway, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.He always felt that the whole thing was a bit inconsistent, but he couldn't say it.

"What's the stressor?" he said to himself. "Why would he take the risk and do it here?"

It doesn't make sense, it doesn't make sense anywhere.According to the laws of criminal evolution, why did he deteriorate so quickly?What stimulated him?What is his motive?

Gideon felt around the bed and found an empty syringe next to the pillow. CSI immediately opened the evidence bag, and Gideon ordered: "Go and test it."

Morgan just put on the gloves and patted Reid on the shoulder: "Hey, how are you?"

"It doesn't make sense." Reid looked serious, "The whole thing was too sudden."

"Then let's think about it from the beginning," Morgan reassured, "I know that Griffith's disappearance has hit us hard, and the team next door is considering taking over. It was Hotch who insisted on investigating and allowed the supervisor to approve it. JJ is still in various places. Coordination. What we need to do is find Griffith, so we need you."

Gideon took one look at Morgan, thinking that sometimes ignorance really is a blessing.

The police officer who was taking notes at the side finally dared to come over: "Excuse me, how did you find out that the victim was missing?"

The word "victim" made Reid feel a pain in his heart.He pinched his brows vigorously, and said, "I was waiting for the elevator downstairs, and suddenly I received a call from Gar...our colleague, saying that Foster's cell phone has no signal, and he thought something might happen to him, and asked me to check it out. I I ran up from the stairwell and almost ran into a cleaner pushing a cart. I noticed it when I checked the surveillance just now, it was about a quarter past six. Then...then..."

This passage can be verified with surveillance video, and the policeman listened to it while recording it, waiting for Reid's "later", but the policeman waited for a long time, but did not wait for the follow-up.

"gentlemen?"

"Mobile phone!" Reid grabbed Morgan, who didn't respond: "What?"

"Griffith's cell phone!" Reid spoke quickly. "I still ran into him in the hallway, which means he disposed of the cell phone first before kidnapping people. Why did he go to the trouble? There must be clues pointing to him in the cell phone!"

Gideon reacted very quickly: "Look, notify the units, find a black slider phone. Reid, you explain the specific model, and you must find his phone!"