Police in America

"We can't be sure yet. All I can tell you now is that the victim is a girl."

The information from the sheriff made everyone frown. It had been three hours since the body was discovered, but the police still couldn't determine the identity, or even which of the missing girls the victim was.

The LAPD's 18th Precinct in the South Division, also known as the Southeast Division, might not be as wealthy as the Wilshire Division, but it wasn't a small, underfunded rural police station either.

They shouldn't be this incompetent, especially with the FBI involved from the start. Given the circumstances, there could be only one reason: the body was so badly damaged that they couldn't identify it through simple means like photos or fingerprints. They would need more time-consuming methods such as an autopsy or DNA testing.

Sure enough, when they reached the dry drainage ditch, they saw a naked female body with a head smashed beyond recognition and severely damaged hands.

Hannah, who had arrived earlier, was standing by the ditch, having just finished discussing the situation with the forensic team.

Jack knew she had been busy with this case since last night. A phone call in the middle of the night had woken her from his embrace. He had even made a special effort to bring her some black chicken soup with goji berries at noon, but hadn't expected the BAU to be called in so quickly.

"Let's go over the situation briefly. Katie Owen and Lindsey Vaughn, both minors, had just turned fifteen. They disappeared at midnight from a movie theater. Their parents are over there. This is the list of all related individuals I've compiled."

Hannah handed the information to Hotchner, looking very professional in her work mode.

"Don't tell me their parents have already seen the body," JJ said quietly.

"No, as soon as the K9 officer picked up her scent, we isolated them from the scene," the sheriff replied.

"So they've been waiting outside all this time?" JJ raised an eyebrow.

The sheriff sighed, "Yes, I'm running out of excuses to delay them."

"I'll go talk to them," JJ volunteered to handle the delicate task of calming the parents.

The scene was too gruesome for them to see. Parents breaking down wouldn't help the investigation and could even lead to violent outbursts.

"JJ, I'll go with you," Hannah offered.

One of them had recently been reading a lot of psychology books to the point of drowsiness, while the other had been practicing shooting at the range, her hands now calloused. Jack could only comfort them separately, having no better solution.

"Glad you could come. I've never seen anything like this before," the sheriff, who looked barely over thirty, said.

"We'll take a look," Hotchner said, putting on gloves.

Jack carefully avoided the evidence markers on the ground and approached the body with Reid. Hotchner, Rossi, and Emily stood behind them.

"This isn't the primary crime scene," Jack, who had recently become proficient in forensic science through his readings, immediately noticed something was wrong.

The body was covered in bruises and cuts, yet there were clear drag marks on the ground, very few footprints, and almost no blood around.

"The arms and thighs show clear signs of being bound. This girl was tortured for a long time," Reid said, crouching beside the body to examine it closely.

The sky was already getting dark. Jack turned on his flashlight and shone it on the girl's neck. "The cause of death is likely strangulation. The bruising on her neck is very obvious."

Reid nodded in agreement, "There are also clear marks from a belt buckle."

"Why destroy her face and hands?" the sheriff, who had followed them down, asked, puzzled.

"This was a kidnapping, right? There was no need for this."

"Clearly, the purpose of the kidnapping wasn't ransom," Hotchner replied. "The victim likely knew the killer. The killer did this to force us to spend time identifying her, giving them more time to escape."

"Do you think the other girl is still alive?" The sheriff, perhaps having heard of BAU's reputation, had completely given up on his own judgment.

Rossi patiently responded, "We have to assume she's alive until we find her body."

"What we need to do now is find the location where she was killed and determine which girl we are looking for."

When they left the drainage ditch and reached the cordoned-off area, JJ and Hannah were still talking to the girls' parents.

"This is Mrs. Owen's phone. She usually has the call recording feature on. There was a call from Katie's number at around one in the morning," Hannah said, handing Jack an iPhone. "I checked it. The call lasted less than a minute and was likely made in secret. It's almost inaudible and needs technical processing."

Jack nodded, found the recording file, sent it to his phone, and then forwarded it to Garcia.

"Hey, darling," Garcia's cheerful voice came through the phone.

Hannah immediately wore an amused expression and looked at JJ, who silently mouthed, "We'll talk about this later."

"Uh, business first, Garcia," Jack said, feeling awkward under their scrutiny.

"Sure thing, bring it on. I'm always your serene harbor," Garcia replied.

Enough, give him a break. Jack was already regretting all the playful banter he'd shared with Garcia in the past. It was fine then, but now, in front of Hannah, it was socially mortifying.

On the other side, Hotchner and Rossi were questioning the parents of the two girls.

"Could you repeat the earlier events?" Hotchner's stern demeanor seemed to comfort the distressed parents more than the women had.

Mrs. Owen, her eyes swollen from crying, clasped her hands tightly, her expression sorrowful. "Yesterday was my anniversary with Bruce. We went out to dinner, and Jason drove the girls to the movies."

"I'm Jason Vaughn, Lindsey's father," a robust middle-aged man said, taking over from Mrs. Owen. "I was supposed to pick them up two hours later, but I waited outside for a long time and never saw them."

It's my birthday today. I'll go out to get my bones adjusted. If I have time when I return, I'll write another chapter. If not, I'll take a day off and enjoy my birthday.

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