Once Cold

He said, “That was the same conclusion I came to back in the day. I still think it. I believe he’s still in that general area, and he’s still haunted by what he did all those years ago.”

A word started echoing through Riley’s mind …

Remorse.

Something suddenly seemed crystal clear to her.

Without stopping to think, she said, “He’s still remorseful, Jake. And I’ll bet anything he leaves flowers on the women’s graves.”

Jake chuckled with satisfaction.

“Good thinking,” he said. “That’s what I always liked about you, Riley. You get the psychology, and you know how to turn it into action.”

Riley smiled.

“I learned from the best,” she said.

Jake grumbled his thanks for the compliment. She thanked him and ended the call. She sat in her office thinking.

It’s up to me.

She had to hunt down the killer and bring him to justice once and for all.

But she knew she couldn’t do it alone.

She needed help just getting the BAU to reopen the case.

She rushed out into the hall and headed for Bill Jeffreys’ office.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Bill Jeffreys was enjoying an unusually quiet morning at BAU when his partner burst into his office. He immediately recognized the expression on her face. This was how Riley Paige looked when she was excited about a new case.

He gestured toward the chair on the other side of his desk, and Riley sat down. But as he listened attentively to her description of the murders, Bill grew puzzled about her enthusiasm. Even so, he made no comment while she gave him the complete rundown of her phone conversation with Jake.

“So what do you think?” she asked Bill when she finished.

“About what?” Bill asked.

“Do you want to work the case with me?”

Bill squinted with uncertainty.

“Sure, I’d like to, but … well, the case isn’t even open. It’s out of our hands.”

Riley took a deep breath and said cautiously, “I was hoping you and I could fix that.”

It took Bill a moment to catch her meaning. Then his eyes widened and he shook his head.

“Oh, no, Riley,” he said. “This one is long gone. Meredith isn’t going to be interested in opening it up again.”

He could see that she also had doubts, but she was trying to hide them.

“We’ve got to try,” she said. “We can solve this case. I know it. Times have changed, Bill. We’ve got new tools at our disposal. For instance, DNA testing was in its infancy back then. Now things are different. You’re not working another case right now, are you?”

“No.”

“Neither am I. Why not give it a shot?”

Bill gazed at Riley with concern. In less than a year his partner had been reprimanded, suspended, and even fired. He knew that her career had sometimes hung by a thread. The only thing that had saved her was her uncanny ability to find her prey, sometimes in unorthodox ways. That skill and his occasional covering for her had kept her in the BAU.

“Riley, you’re asking for trouble,” he said. “Don’t rock the boat.”

He could see her bristle at that and immediately regretted his choice of words.

“OK, if you don’t want to do it,” she said, getting up from her chair, turning, and heading for his office door.

*

Riley hated that phrase. “Don’t rock the boat.”

After all, she was a boat-rocker to the core. And she knew perfectly well that it was one of the things that made her a good agent.

She was on her way out of Bill’s office when he called, “Wait a minute. Where are you going?”

“Where do you think I’m going?” she called back.

“OK, OK! I’m coming!”

She and Bill hurried down the hall toward the office of Team Chief Brent Meredith. Riley knocked on their boss’s door and heard a gruff voice call out, “Come in.”

Riley and Bill stepped inside Meredith’s spacious office. As always, the team chief cut a daunting presence with his large physique and his black, angular features. He was hunched over his desk poring over reports.

“Make it quick,” Meredith said without looking up from his work. “I’m busy.”

Riley ignored Bill’s worried glance and boldly sat down beside Meredith’s desk.

She said, “Chief, Agent Jeffreys and I want to reopen a cold case, and we wondered if – ”

Still focused on his papers, Meredith interrupted.

“Nope.”

“Huh?” Riley said.

“Request denied. Now if you don’t mind, I’ve got work to do.”

Riley stayed seated. She felt momentarily stymied.