The couple heard the familiar 'bing' and the elevator door opened.

Parker and Spencer walked through the glass doors and headed towards their desks.

The young adult saw the flowers, tulips, in the vase that Parker had noticed the other day.

"Someone sent you flowers," Garcia said and stood next to Parker with JJ. "Who send them?"

"What do you think?", JJ replied, pointing to Spencer.

The young genius was already too immersed in the files to notice that the others talked about him

~~~~

"St. Louis is in trouble," JJ began to explain as Hotch and Gideon were the last to enter the briefing room.

"They've got two serial killers."

There were already two evidence boards on the walls, one for each case.

"This killer abducts his victims from public places, dumps them in the woods. They consulted us months ago after the third murder," Gideon recalled.

"Well, now it might be up to six. Ellen Carroll's been missing since yesterday. The first two victims were found near Mill Creek in Mark Twain National Forest," JJ continued.

Parker and Spencer stood in front of one of the boards and looked at the map connecting where the victims were kidnapped and later found.

"No wonder it takes days to find the bodies. The forest is 1.5 million acres, and 78,000 of that's wilderness."

"What's the story with these women?" Hotch wanted to know.

He stood in front of the other board with the information about the second case.

"Eight victims. All prostitutes. Latest is Marci Mitchell. She was killed last night with a .44 Magnum. All are tied to a serial shooter, claiming responsibility. He's contacted Jim Meyers, a reporter at the Missouri Herald."

The self-written letter from the second Unsub appeared on the screen.

"So he's not getting the attention he thinks he deserves," Hotch commented. "He signs it the 'Hollow Man', names himself for the press."

"Why Hollow Man? What, does he feel empty inside or something?"

"He uses hollow point bullets. No one even knew this guy existed until he sent this letter."

"Well, he's killed more victims, but look who he's chosen. Hundreds of victims go unnoticed because they're social outcasts who never make the front page," Parker murmured.

"When Mill Creek kills, the Hollow Man shoots another prostitute," summarized Spencer.

"So one doesn't want to be outdone by the other. Sounds like sibling rivalry to me."

"They've been killing independently of each other for a year now."

"With each killer learning something from the other."

~~~~

Elbert Hubbard once wrote,

"If men could only know each other, they would neither idolize nor hate."

Half an hour later the team was in the jet. JJ handed each of the others two files– one for each case.

Parker thanked her and passed two files to Spencer. The young man was lost in his thoughts and looked out the window.

The young agent placed their hand on his arm and tapped it four times to get his attention.

"What's wrong, Spence?"

"Even though there are roughly 30 serial killers at large in the US at any given time, it's an incredibly rare occurrence to have them operating in the same city," Spencer murmured.

"How many times has that happened?"

"To my knowledge, three times. There was a guy killing at the same time as the Son of Sam, again in New Orleans, and most recently with the Phoenix murders."

"Serial shooters are typically loners and this guy likes to kill at night. His victims are prostitutes, so he may lack confidence with women or have poor social skills," Hotch changed the subject.

"There's no rape. The guy could be impotent."

"He's a wannabe tough guy."

"It's not hard to be tough holding a .44."

"The gun gives him power and lets him maintain distance from the kill. This guy doesn't want to touch the bodies with his hands."

"The Mill Creek Killer hunts during the day and targets educated, middle-class women. He'd have to look and act like they do," said Gideon and placed the photos of the victims on the table.

"The women died from blunt force head traumas. This guy wants to be close. He wants to feel the life leave their bodies."

"These guys are polar opposites."

"Just like their victims," Hotch said. "They live in the same city, but they're worlds apart. I'm going to see if the shooter's victims have any families I can talk to."

"That's a good idea. I'm already familiar with the Mill Creek case," explained Gideon.

"Reid, can you take a look at the letter for handwriting analysis and psycholinguistics?" Hotch addressed the young agent.

"Of course."

"Looks like I'm with you. I'll go have a talk with Ellen Carroll's husband," reported Derek.

"I'm meeting Jim Meyers, the reporter from the Missouri Herald."

"You want me to accompany you?" Parker wanted to know.

"Yes, thanks."

"Well, tell him not to write about the Hollow Man. We want to draw the shooter out. The best way to do that is to act like he doesn't exist."

~~~~

JJ and Parker entered the police station with two evidence boxes. They asked an officer where they would find the lead agent and the woman pointed to a small briefing room.

"Hi, you must be Agent Sheridan?" JJ said to the man and shook his hand.

"Agent Jareau?"

"Yeah, and this is Agent Gallagher."

"Hi," Parker also greeted the man and shook his hand.

"I really appreciate you coming so quickly."

"Of course."

"Why don't you set up in here?"

The two agents placed the boxes on the table with the other boxes and files. All five boxes were about the 'Mill Creek Killer'.

"Wow, you've got lots of evidence for the Mill Creek Killer case," Parker commented.

"What about the Hollow Man?" JJ asked.

Agent Sheridan pointed to a lone file directly in front of the investigators.

"Right here."

"There's been at least eight women shot," JJ said. "This is all we've got?"

"You know these cases don't generate much evidence. All we have at the scene are a couple of bullets and no one's talking," the agent tried to explain.

Parker nodded slightly. He was right, it was hard to find enough evidence in cases like this. It was part of the victims' job to not be noticed.

But with so many victims, just one file?

"Hopefully we can change that."

"Agent Jareau," another agent spoke to the blonde woman. "There's a reporter here to see you."

"Thank you."

"I'll start setting up," Parker suggested.

JJ nodded and left the room with Agent Sheridan.

Parker started pinning the information about the 'Hollow Man' case to one of the boards. They were almost done when JJ returned, and Parker reported that Ellen Carroll's body had been found.

JJ and Agent Sheridan made their way to the crime scene where they would meet Gideon and Derek.

It turned out that this UnSub spent time with his victims and visited them after the murder.

~~

"Two victims at once. That's a first for him," said Spencer as he and Parker saw Hotch pass the police tape.

The Hollow Man had killed two victims that morning. The two women were lying in front of a garbage can on a side street.

"Do you think he went out looking to kill more than one woman or is it just happening?"

"Well, he chose a different hunting ground. Yes, we're in an alley, but we're behind an expensive hotel in a nice neighborhood. You get a different class of prostitute. Ones that don't walk the street alone. "

"He was looking for a challenge."

Parker crouched down between the two bodies to take a closer look. Then they noticed today's edition of the newspaper. The headline was about the Mill Creek Killer.

"The question is, what gave him the confidence to stray out of his comfort zone?" Hotch asked.

"Anger," Parker replied, straightening up again.

One of the forensics picked up the newspaper and put it in an evidence bag.

"Please, make sure to run that for prints," the young agent asked the man.

"Yes of course."

"He displayed the newspaper between–," Parker began.

However, they stopped the sentence when they felt a scratchy throat and had to cough. Spencer automatically handed them the coffee he got on the way. Parker took a sip and handed his cup back to their boyfriend.

"Better?"

"Yeah, thanks."

"Again. He displayed the newspaper between the victims. He took the time when he could've just tossed it aside."

"It's deliberate. He wants us to know he's angry."

"Angry enough to change his MO."

~~

At the police station, Parker and Spencer looked through the message the Hollow Man sent to the reporter.

"Too bad we couldn't trace any prints from the newspaper," commented JJ as she pinned the photos from the current crime scene to the others.

"What have you got?"

"He only sent this to an individual, which shows he's not confident enough to initiate contact with the masses," Parker began. "Emotional indicators are analyzed through slants. The shooter maintains vertical, narrow-lettered writing, both signs of repression. And the pressure, if you look closely, is excessively heavy, which shows that he's uptight and can easily overreact."

"You got all that from his handwriting?"

"Graphology's an effective and reliable indicator of personality and behavior," explained Spencer.

"My writing's always different," JJ pointed out.

"That's because it feeling symbolizes your emotions at that given time. Just like your facial expressions parallel the way you're when you're speaking."

"I'm surprised this guy writes in cursive. His message is so clear, I would've thought he'd print everything."

"Actually, his connected writing shows that he deals with problems in a practical and direct manner."

"Like shooting someone."

"Exactly."

~~

"The Hollow Man uses simple statements. All first-person. For example, "I won't be ignored." He's obviously tired of feeling this way. It's quite possible he has a job in solitude or one that he feels strips him of "His identity. His job might require him to wear a uniform. Something that shows absolutely no individuality. Or he may be overqualified for his menial job and feels that he doesn't get the respect that he necessarily deserves," Spencer began Introduce the profile.

"But today he's killed two women, which tells us he's growing confident. This makes him unpredictable and dangerous. And because he has no physical contact with his victims, it's going to make him that much harder to catch."

"We have more information on the Mill Creek Killer because he spends a lot of time with his victims before and after his kills."

"Because his victims willingly follow him in broad daylight, he appears harmless. He's most likely handsome."

"Handsome?" Agent Sheridan asked.

"Yes," Parker confirmed. "These women wouldn't follow an unattractive man. They just wouldn't."

"He's handsome and he's got the social skills to trick his victims. Those who know him well, they'd be shocked to learn that he's the man that we're after," said Derek.

"He's been able to get his victims away from family, friends. Obviously, this makes him feel powerful, so..."

"If this guy is so smart, why would he risk driving his victims from the abduction site to the woods?"

"Because of the ritual. It's become the most important thing to him. It dominates his thoughts. The woods provide the privacy he needs," explained Gideon.

"The Hollow Man is motivated by external pressures. This is a guy who simply wants attention. The Mill Creek Killer, on the other hand, he's driven by internal forces. He's a sexually motivated offender. Now, this makes him a lot more predictable, but don't think for a second it makes him any easier to catch."

~~

As soon as the team finished presenting the profiles, there were news.

"Meredith Dale, 25," JJ reported, handing Gideon a photo. "She was supposed to meet her friend for a bike ride but disappeared."

"Disappeared when?" asked Parker.

"An hour ago."

"How can we be sure it's him?"

"Well, look at her. She's his type physically, she vanishes into thin air. It's got the Mill Creek Killer's MO all over it."

"I'll set up roadblocks in and out of the forest," said Agent Sheridan and left the room.

"Well, based on the other timelines, we have to assume he's hiding her body right now," Derek addressed the others.

"Our best chance of catching him is to find Meredith Dale's body and sit tight. We know he'll be back."

Derek discovered that the Mill Creek Killer was dumping his victims in the woods where rangers had patrolled just the day before. They found Meredith Dale and were supposed to wait there until the guy showed up again. But he didn't come.

Instead, Jim Meyers -the reporter- showed up. The Hollow Man had written a message to him and others about where to find Meredith.

~~~~

"So our plan to catch the Mill Creek Killer was ruined by the Hollow Man?" summarized Spencer.

"And I thought it couldn't get any more confusing," Parker muttered.

"And now the Hollow Man's on a high. He hasn't pulled the trigger since he took two victims yesterday. Is he satisfied or is he just getting started?" said Hotch.

"We'll find out," JJ replied as she entered the room with the current newspaper.

She handed the newspaper to Hotch, who read the headline out loud.

"'Hollow Man helps FBI find the Mill Creek Killer's victim.'"

"Nice, he's alerted the media and injected himself into the investigation."

"And he's getting the attention he's been craving."

"But if the shooter really wants to get the other guy arrested, he would've called us and not the media," Hotch pointed out.

"He must know the Mill Creek Killer needs to revisit the body."

"If he can't defile the woman again, the need will become so strong it could push him into a frenzy," said Gideon.

"And if that happens, this guy's just a time bomb waiting to explode."

Gideon was proven right. The Mill Creek Killer attempted to kidnap a woman in the middle of the day and in public. However, she started screaming and he ran away.

~~

"Great. Thanks, Morgan," said Hotch and hung up.

He, Spencer and Parker stayed behind and took a closer look at the last few weeks' newspapers.

Parker and Spencer looked through the newspapers, Hotch paced back and forth in front of the boards.

"The witness got a good look at the Mill Creek Killer. You know, if it's the Hollow Man's intention to force him into a frenzy, he's getting what he wants. He knew exactly where to find Meredith Dale's body. He figured out the route to the dump site the same way we did."

"We always say serial killers make the best profilers," Spencer replied.

Parker looked up to grab a new newspaper when they saw Spencer holding his newspaper too close to his face.

After putting the newspaper away, Parker dug through the newspapers for Spencer's glasses and gave them to him. Then they took a new newspaper.

"Yeah, but this guy's dead," Hotch said.

Spencer put on his glasses, continued reading and tapped the table four times.

Hotch opened another box and looked at the newspapers.

"Yeah, the headline doesn't mention the shooter at all. We talked to Jim Meyers, the reporter, asked him not to respond to the letter. He doesn't and then the guy goes out and shoots two more women."

"From a better part of town," Spencer added.

"Yeah, what gives him this confidence?"

"And what's the significance of the paper at the scene? We know he wants to be newsworthy. He could've just tossed it aside. Instead he displayed it. There's something he wants us to look at. There's definitely something in the paper. "

"Hey, I figured it out."

"Great job, Spence," said Parker, throwing the newspaper on the table in front of them.

"What is it?" Hotch wanted to know.

"They're talking in the classifieds."

~~

"Classifieds. Code names. This feels like an old spy movie," commented Agent Sheridan.

"It's low-tech, simple, but very effective. They've been doing this for months and nobody ever knew it."

"This is the first one that we found," said Spencer.

He pressed the remote control and the first message appeared on the projector on the wall.

"The references are what made us suspicious. 'Sunny: Are you an artist, too? I'd love to see your work sometime. Holden.'"

"Sunny? Holden?"

"They're characters from Catcher in the Rye," Parker explained. "Holden is the main character and Sunny is prostitute. It's also widely accepted as a loved book of sociopaths."

"Mark David Chapman quoted it after killing John Lennon."

"Deranged minds identify with Holden's alienation and detachment."

"Parker found the initial contact," Spencer continued to report, and the next message appeared on the screen.

"It ran in the paper, unchanged, for months. 'We have different tastes, but I can appreciate your art. Sunny.'"

"Sunny is the Hollow Man. He initiated contact," Hotch added.

"What's he getting out of it?" Agent Sheridan wanted to know.

"A mentor. Offered admiration and respect. In return, he gains encouragement and confidence."

"But when the Hollow Man remained unnoticed by the press, he resented his mentor and turned it into a rivalry."

"Hollow Man became jealous. They're both killers, but they weren't seen on the same playing field."

"What else did you find?"

"'An overwhelming area and you never get lost? Sunny.'"

"Then the answer to this question, 'I do my research. It's not so random when you know the area. I like Cotton Wood in SGC. Holden.'"

"SGC? He's talking about Saltgrass Cove. He told him how to find Meredith Dale."

"Why?"

"Teaching his student a lesson."

"We understand their relationship, let's use it against them."

~~

Derek came back into the room after a few minutes.

"Garcia says these they covered their tracks. How's it going in here?" he asked.

"Reid's imitating the Hollow Man's language patterns to send a message to the Mill Creek Killer. He's offering condolences on losing Meredith Dale."

"Well, if he can't get to Meredith Dale, he's going to need a body. And he's going to need it real soon."

"You guys worried that the Hollow Man's going to ruin our plan again?"

"He wants the Mill Creek Killer to get caught. The pupil's trying to kill the teacher."

A few moments later, Spencer finished, and the message was ready to be given to James Meyers to be published in the newspaper.

'Dear Holden, They say imitation is the highest form of fluttery. Since you were almost in harm's way, I thought I'd share some art. Should make you feel better. Here's my gift to you. Sunny.'

~~~~

The trap was indeed sprung. The Mill Creek Killer was caught, and it wasn't long before he confessed to the murders.

Now the team could focus on the Hollow Man. And JJ held a press conference to do just that.

"The women of St. Louis can rest easy tonight. After a long year, the Mill Creek Killer is in custody. This man is highly intelligent, and he uses a sophisticated ruse when luring these women in public places. The Mill Creek Killer is someone "The BAU wants to study as one of the most complex criminals we've dealt with in years."

"What's the FBI doing about the other serial killer?" one of the reporters wanted to know.

"We have new information about this case. We no longer believe the shootings are related. Yes?"

"Agent Jareau. What's the new information?"

"We believe they're isolated incidents and we're looking into the possibility that the last two were copycats. Jim Meyers?"

"Are you referring to the killer who calls himself the Hollow Man?" Jim Meyers asked the question. This question was of course part of the plan.

"We believe the person who wrote that letter is nothing but a street thug. We have evidence that indicates that the letter was just a prank to throw us off the investigation of the Mill Creek Killer. This is no longer a BAU case. It lacks a certain sophistication, class. There's just nothing elegant about it."

"But, Agent Jareau–"

"That's all the questions we'll take for now. Thank you."

"So we've set the bait. Let's see if he takes it."

~~~~

"And then we could–"

Parker couldn't finish the sentence because Spencer pushed them behind him without warning and moved closer to the pillar.

The young agent was completely confused at first, but then he saw what was going on.

There was a man standing at the door who had his gun pointed at an officer, it was the Hollow Man.

"Where is he? I want to see him, right now. You tell him the Hollow Man is here."

"Get down. Call SWAT."

"He told you to say those things about me, didn't he? He told you to use those words?" the Hollow Man addressed JJ.

The young woman said nothing and continued to point her gun at him.

Then the Hollow Man's gaze fell on the window of the room where Gideon was still talking to the Mill Creek Killer.

Derek took advantage of the distraction and knocked the gun out of the Hollow Man's hand and he was arrested.

"Get him out of here."

"I'm no less elegant than he is. I'm no copycat."

"Shut your mouth."

"I left you the newspaper. I gave you the Mill Creek Killer. What else do I have to do?" said the Hollow Man as he was taken to the cells.

"Go! Get him out of here."

~~

It was quiet on the return flight. Nobody was in the mood to have a big conversation.

Shortly before landing the fax came through and JJ came back to the others with the headline for tomorrow's edition of the newspaper.

"This is the story for tomorrow."

She passed the paper to Derek.

"'They were our daughters, sisters, mothers and friends,'" the profiler read.

He passed it on to Gideon.

"'They have every right to be remembered and memorialized.'

Spencer took the paper and he and Parker could now read the headline.

'VICTIMS REMEMBERED'

Below, the photos were all victims of the Hollow Man.

"They didn't mention the shooter," Spencer said and the last thing Hotch did was look at the article.

"He was a nobody who wanted to be somebody by killing people and they didn't give him that. Good."

Mahatma Gandhi once said,

"Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seemed invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always."