After categorizing all the victim files, everyone was exhausted—not just Reid and the others, but even Garcia, working remotely from Los Angeles on database comparisons. Dark circles were visible under everyone's eyes.
"We've got something new!" Jill Moss, still looking energetic, walked into the conference room, clutching her laptop excitedly.
"This is a recent recording sent by the Denver police. Someone anonymously called from a public phone."
She played the audio file, and a distorted voice came through, altered by a voice changer.
"I think I saw something. It might be related to your serial killer."
"What did you see?" asked the female officer on the line.
"My car broke down on Interstate 70. When I got out to fix it, I noticed a man digging a hole by the side of the road."
"What kind of hole?" the officer asked.
"A burial pit. I saw blood. The body's clothes were stripped off."
"Can you leave your name, sir?" the officer inquired.
"300 miles west of Denver, by the mile marker. You'll find it," the caller said before hanging up. The recording ended.
"The killer couldn't hold back. That was definitely him on the phone," Jill Moss said, her excitement clear.
"His choice of words is interesting," Reid mused as he scrolled through previously scanned case notes on his tablet.
"Here." He pointed to a specific phrase in a document. "He refers to the victim as 'the bleeder' and uses 'it' as a pronoun."
Hotchner, arms crossed, spoke coldly. "'It' is the dehumanization of the victim, and 'bleeder' is a derogatory term, likely referring to menstruation. Agent Moss is right—the caller is very likely the killer."
"Jack? Jack! Are you okay?" Hotchner called out repeatedly, finally snapping Jack out of his thoughts.
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Emily and I will head to the scene right away." Jack nodded, understanding what Hotchner needed from him.
Before leaving, Jack quietly pulled JJ aside. "Have you noticed that Agent Moss's outfits have been getting flashier lately?"
In the midst of their frantic workload, Jack hadn't paid much attention to those around him, but when Jill Moss walked into the meeting room today, he had noticed something different. Jack recalled their first meeting with the "mature" agent, where she had worn a well-tailored suit that emphasized her figure, with light makeup—but nothing more.
Today, however, her look had changed. The subtle earrings had been replaced by dangling ones, and her previously unkempt hair was now sleek and draped over her shoulders. Most notably, Moss was still wearing a black business suit, but her usual trousers had been swapped for a pencil skirt, paired with stockings and higher heels.
"You actually notice her fashion choices?" JJ raised an eyebrow, giving Jack a once-over.
"I'm serious. From a female perspective, is her change in appearance within the normal range?" Jack didn't want to make assumptions and needed an expert opinion.
"Maybe she's just staying ready for the media," Emily chimed in, unfazed as she prepared to join Jack at the scene. "Or maybe she really is secretly seeing Rossi," JJ teased, flashing a knowing smile.
"Maybe. I just hope it's for one of those reasons," Jack said, casting another concerned glance at Jill Moss's retreating figure. Her pencil skirt, seemingly just a bit too short, gave off an unexpected allure.
——
By the time Jack and Emily arrived at the scene, night had already fallen. Interstate 70, which connects Los Angeles and Denver, happened to be the same route Jack had taken earlier with Rossi and Reid on their way to Colorado.
A local police department had already cordoned off a flat area not far from the mile marker. A portable generator hummed in the distance, while tall light poles illuminated the site, giving the forensic team plenty of light to work by.
When Jack and Emily arrived, they found a shallow, two-meter-long, one-meter-wide pit that had been dug, inside of which lay the naked body of a woman.
The body wasn't buried very deeply, and the decomposition wasn't severe; in fact, there was hardly any noticeable stench of decay.
"The body is remarkably well-preserved," Emily muttered as she crouched by the edge of the pit, greeting two forensic officers who were busy working.
One of the forensic officers, a woman with graying hair who looked to be in her fifties or sixties, glanced up at Emily and nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's very unusual."
Jack, after putting on gloves, touched the soil around the pit. The dirt was moist, and although the body wasn't wrapped in anything, there were barely any signs of insect activity on the skin.
"The body has been here for no more than two days," Jack noted. The temperature in Colorado had reached nearly 30°C in July; if the body had been exposed for longer, it would have already shown signs of advanced decomposition.
"Exactly. The officers didn't even need cadaver dogs—the disturbed soil was quite obvious. However, we can't yet determine the exact time of death. I suspect the body was refrigerated before being buried."
Perhaps sensing she was dealing with knowledgeable FBI agents, the forensic officer spoke more freely.
Jack pointed at the victim's abdomen. "Could you clear this area? There seems to be something here."
"One moment." The forensic officer retrieved a brush and carefully cleared away the dirt in that spot before leaning in for a closer look.
"It looks like a burn?"
"More likely an electrical burn," Jack sighed, now almost certain that this was a victim of their sadistic killer.
The forensic officer nodded. "I'll confirm it back at the lab. If it's as you say, I'll highlight it in my report."
Jack gave her a grateful smile. "And please identify the victim as soon as possible. This is urgent."
After speaking with the forensic team, Jack and Emily used their flashlights to search the surrounding area, but they found nothing—no suspicious tire tracks or other evidence.
The officers who found the body couldn't provide any new leads either, despite their best efforts to secure the crime scene.
The forensic team had nearly finished their work, with two assistants preparing to place the body onto a stretcher for transport. Jack and Emily headed back to their car, planning to return to Denver overnight.
"Hey, I think you should come back and take another look," the forensic officer suddenly called out.
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