Criminal Minds (2005–…): Season 13, Episode 14 - Miasma - full transcript

Previously on "Criminal Minds"...

You're not going down?

I have to go up, actually.

Oh, right, you're meeting with Barnes.

Should I be worried?

Not as long as I'm in charge.

Good evening, agent Jareau.

Assistant Director Barnes.

I'm sorry for the sudden urgency

in having to meet tonight.

However, effective immediately,



SSA Emily Prentiss will be
placed on administrative leave

pending an internal review.

If you wouldn't mind leaving
your cell phone out here,

we can talk in my office.

My apologies for the cloak-and-dagger
routine with the email.

I needed a reason to bring you in

that would ensure a
certain confidentiality.

What do you mean, Agent Prentiss

has been placed on administrative leave?

I've been looking over your work,

and I think you're
doing an excellent job.

Why do you think the brass
didn't give you a shot

at unit chief when Agent
Hotchner elected to leave?

Prentiss was the natural choice.



She had seniority.

You're aware this month
marks the one-year anniversary

of Agent Reid's arrest in Mexico?

I was aware that was coming up, yes.

When something like this happens,

it's standard operating procedure

for the director to
initiate an internal audit.

I've been asked to go
over the BAU's caseload

to make sure that you're
following protocol.

We work by the book, always.

Then this should be a
fairly painless process.

Of course.

As team leader, Agent Prentiss will need

to give a full account
of the BAU's actions.

That's why effective immediately,

you will be the acting head of
the Behavioral Analysis Unit.

I...

Pending further review,
you and your team

will remain on active duty.

Agent Jareau, as a courtesy,

I chose to inform you first.

I'll be speaking with Agent
Prentiss in the morning,

so I'd appreciate it if
you'd keep this between us

until you hear from me.

Emily?

Hey, I was hoping we were
gonna get the night off,

but we've just pulled another case.

I know it's been a long week,
but I need you back here.

Are you still in...

Emily, something's going on.

Thank you all for getting
back here so quickly.

I got a call from Chief Wheeler

at the New Orleans Police Department.

They've requested our
help. Garcia, go ahead.

The big easy has its own
big bad operating in its midst.

Earlier today, police
uncovered a mass grave

inside a vandalized crypt.

Tremé cemetery.

10 bodies in total were discovered

by the groundskeeper this afternoon.

Yeah. The bodies were buried and burned

inside the secluded tomb
that had been pried open.

They are believed to have been
placed there in the last few weeks.

The tomb was off-limits due
to some maintenance being done.

Looks like local PD is still
working on IDing the victims.

Has a cause of death been determined?

No. But the coroner did reveal
this one super icky detail...

All of the bodies had been
drained of their blood.

Let's make sure to check
on that first thing.

Tremé cemetery's an active site.

It's famous. It's the
oldest cemetery in the city.

Home to Marie Laveau,

the voodoo queen of New Orleans,

known for her powers of clairvoyance,
healing, and intimidation.

Legend has it she once helped free a man

accused of murder by
praying for 72 hours straight

with 3 hot peppers in her mouth.

Voodoo queen. I mean,
is that what this is?

Some kind of ritualistic killing?

I see these Xs here.

They're used to denote the grave

of a powerful voodoo practitioner.

Markings like this aren't
uncommon in these parts.

These look like they've
been here for a while.

Could be the reason our unsub
chose this particular crypt

to do his bidding.

New Orleans PD wants us there asap.

There is one more thing.
I won't be coming along.

JJ will be acting as
unit chief in my absence.

I have a meeting with Assistant
Director Barnes tomorrow morning.

It's short notice, but
as far as I understand,

it's just a standard
administrative review,

so I'm sure everything will be fine.

Ok. Um, wheels up in 30.

"My wound is geography."

"It is also my anchorage,
my port of call."

Pat Conroy.

First Barnes pulls you in
for a late-night meeting,

then Prentiss.

And it feels like something's going on.

Yeah, and why all the urgency?

I mean, it couldn't have
waited till we all got back?

Something must have
triggered an internal review.

It's me.

It's been almost a year
since my arrest in Mexico.

It's just an annual review,

standard operating procedure.

Matt, you worked with Barnes
on your last assignment.

How much trouble are we in?

I mean, I hate to say it,

but this is the exact same thing

she did with the IRT.
Before disbanding the unit.

She started with the head of the team,

then she worked her way down.

She tried to pit us against each other.

Barnes' reputation precedes her.

She's climbed the ranks well.

Well, clearly she's good at her job.

We're better.

And we haven't done anything wrong.

We can't worry about this right now

because we have a case.

People need our help.

So, let's get started with victimology.

5 of the 10 victims
have been identified.

These 3... Jason
Chamers, Lindsay Montoya,

and Gary Keulchy... were homeless.

And these two... Sonequa
Fox and Daniel Rikers...

were working professionals.

And Mr. Rikers and Ms. Fox were

both reported missing
a week and a half ago.

That's correct. They both
left their homes in mid-city

and never returned.

And the 3 homeless
victims were last seen

in a shelter near the French quarter?

Yes. We periodically check
the nightly roll calls

when we find a body.

They were most likely
panhandling in the area.

Our unsub crossed
racial and gender lines.

And he's mobile.

You know, realistically,
it's likely each victim

was abducted, killed, and
disposed of individually.

We need to see what
the M.E. can tell us

about the timeline of the murders.

We'd expect an unsub like this

to start with high-risk
victims like the homeless

and then move on to low-risk victims

like Sonequa and Daniel,

but until we ID the remaining victims,

it's really hard to
draw any conclusions.

So he'd need somewhere to hold them

and do his bloodletting business

before bringing them back to the crypt.

I've already started a geo-profile,
but the more we can learn

about the victims' last moments,
the more accurate it'll be.

Good. Garcia can help with that, too.

Excuse me, sir.

Found another burned body.

This time in a crypt in
Tremé cemetery number two.

- Just one?
- Yeah.

And the crypt wasn't nearly as secluded.

We've disrupted his routine.

Another tomb,

but now he's improvising.

Dave, head to the M.E.

Spence, Tara, why don't
you guys stick around here,

help with the identification efforts?

Matt and Luke, you're with me.

Let's head to this latest crime scene.

I want to reiterate that this
conversation is on the record.

Today is February 1, 2018.

This is Assistant Director Linda Barnes

sitting with Unit Chief Emily Prentiss.

Now, Agent Prentiss, do you
know why you're here today?

I do not.

Agent Jareau didn't call you?

No.

We're not off to a
very good start, are we?

I've asked you one question,
and you've lied to me.

Shall we try that again?
Did Agent Jareau call you?

No, Agent Jareau did not call me.

I called her to let her
know we had another case.

She informed me that
she had spoken with you,

but she did not disclose what was said.

Agent Jareau isn't in any trouble.

I expected she'd call you.

As I'm sure you're aware, it
is the one-year anniversary

of Agent Reid's arrest in Mexico

following a high-speed chase
with the local authorities.

Your team traveled down to
conduct your own investigation

into the incident

and, per your case report,

transfer him to a federal
facility in the U.S.

I went through your findings

and subsequent
months-long investigation.

The thing is, once I started
to dig, I couldn't stop.

What I found, Agent Prentiss,

was that with you at the helm,

team loyalty is more
important than Bureau policy.

That's not a fair assessment.

As your team has
expanded, so have the cases

you've agreed to investigate.

Mistakes have been made.

So that's what we're here to discuss...

The state of the
Behavioral Analysis Unit

under the leadership of Emily Prentiss.

Unsub was confident
he wouldn't be caught.

This would take a lot of effort.

What do you got?

Scorching patterns on the concrete

indicate the unsub used
some kind of accelerant.

No signs of blood or trauma.

It's likely he was killed elsewhere

and then disposed here.

All right. Well, our victim
here is Jeremy Paulson.

According to his wife, he
left work early last night

told co-workers he wasn't feeling well.

His car was found parked at the
neighborhood basketball court.

His water bottle and
basketball were found nearby.

So did he meet someone

or was he just playing hooky?

We should get local PD to
canvass the area for witnesses,

both here and at the park.

This crypt doesn't have any
voodoo markings or symbols,

which is odd,

considering that a lot of
the graves in this area do.

So maybe it's not as important to him

as we initially thought.

Well, if this doesn't involve voodoo,

then why the elaborate M.O.?

It's not for show. He's
concealing and burning the bodies.

And we found his burial ground

and he barely skipped a beat.

This feels less like
some kind of a ritual

and more like a mission.

The question is, what's his grievance?

Sorry. Just allergies.

What you doin'?

You can't park here. It's...

What?

Unh!

So despite having one of the
highest solve rates in the Bureau,

your leadership record is complicated.

This business with Roswell

just being the most recent example.

Most recent example of what?

A team gone rogue.

We've been accused of that before,

and we've even testified

in front of the Senate
intelligence committee.

It wasn't true then,
and it isn't true now.

But you'd agree that
transparency and accountability

are of the utmost importance?

Of course.

So the shooting death
of a man in custody

in a police station in Roswell...

Hold on. Let's just get
our facts straight first.

It was a suicide, not a shooting.

The man in question wasn't in custody,

and he was not in a police station.

Mr. Downey voluntarily agreed
to speak with the police

about an unusual death in
the Roswell truther community.

And he had a concealed weapon?

The weapon wasn't detected
due to a mechanical error

with the metal detector that
the Roswell PD had installed.

There was no indication that he
or anyone else would be armed.

However, if you had
questioned this group

formally in a police station,

the outcome might very
well have been different.

The truthers distrust law enforcement.

They would never have cooperated

if we'd brought them
into a police station.

Perhaps not.

And ultimately, that decision

allowed us to find the person

responsible for the
murder of a local man.

At the cost of another.

And then there's the death

of SSA Stephen Walker,

your team member.

You knew Agent Walker.

You worked with him on
assignment in France.

You recruited him to join the BAU.

He was an exemplary agent.

SSA Walker was the first
agent to die in the field

in the BAU's storied history.

So I can tell you

what kind of accelerant he used.

Good old drugstore
variety rubbing alcohol.

That's why the burn patterns
on the bodies are so uneven.

These aren't defensive wounds, are they?

No. The flexion of the
elbows, knees, and hands

is caused by the
shrinkage of body tissues

due to dehydration.

So the pugilistic pose is a result

of the body being
exposed to extreme heat.

Yes. And it can occur even
if the bodies were dead

before they were burned,

which I believe was the case here.

And the bloodletting, was
that done postmortem as well?

Yes. He sliced the carotid.

Nice clean cut.

So the unsub is skilled with a knife.

If exsanguination wasn't
the cause of death, what was?

Each victim had large
quantities of pure ketamine

in their system...

A powerful anesthetic.

They were most likely injected
with a pretty hefty dose.

So all the violence done
to the body was postmortem.

What do you have, Rossi?

A strange contradiction.

The cause of death was a
lethal dose of ketamine.

Now, these kills may look extreme,

but the C.O.D. itself
was practically painless.

Well, it's doubtful the unsub would even

need to interact or create
a ruse with his victims.

I mean, he could just
sneak up and inject them.

All right. Thanks, Rossi.

We gave a full report

on our year-long investigation
to apprehend Mr. Scratch.

Stephen Walker's work
was essential to our case.

Your team drove into an ambush.

No. We spent months on the offensive

luring Scratch out of
hiding, and it worked.

Agent Walker's death was
a tragedy, but it wasn't...

Anyone's fault? Preventable?

I spoke with Agent Walker's widow,

and you're lucky she's not
suing the Bureau for negligence.

What we have here, Agent Prentiss,

is a series of questionable decisions.

You're not out in the field.

It's not black and white.

These are snap decisions.

Ok. Let's go back to the case

that triggered this review.

I spoke with an officer
Cabrera in Matamoros, Mexico.

Do you remember him?

I do.

For our reports, I would like to have

the recording of that
cognitive interview.

I didn't record it.

Who has the knife? Who is stabbing Rosa?

It's in my hand.

Right now this is just
more evidence against him.

I trust you know what you're doing.

We do.

He says you deleted a voice memo

in which Agent Reid allegedly confessed

to the murder of Nadie Ramos.

That's not just tampering with evidence.

That's obstruction of justice,

charges that could end your career.

I'd like to take a break.

Ok, two more of the initial 10 victims

have been identified...

28-year-old dentist Tyler Roberts

and teen runaway Heather Pineda.

According to missing person reports

and the timeline the M.E. sent over,

they're most likely
victims number 4 and 5.

This guy's victimology's
all over the place.

I mean, he's bouncing back and forth

between the vulnerable
and working professionals.

These may all be victims of opportunity,

but there's a measure of
compassion to these kills.

It doesn't feel random.

Yeah, he doesn't want them to suffer.

It's almost like he's
putting them to sleep.

Or putting them out of their misery.

This unsub has been back and forth

across the city at all hours of the day,

so he's clearly using some
kind of vehicle to hunt.

He's most likely unemployed.

We may not understand
his ritual, but we know

he possesses an overwhelming
need to complete it,

enough to risk going back to the area

despite a heavy police presence.

These cemeteries are important to him,

if not for personal reasons,
then for what they represent.

So did he lose someone? Is
that what triggered all of this?

We should increase patrols
in and around the graveyard

and within a two-mile radius,

and if they are important to him,

he'll probably revisit.

And ketamine is available on the street,

but it's pricey,

so we should also
check in to vet offices,

medical providers, see if any of them

had any recent break-ins.

All right, the victim's
name is Carl Kevork,

and he escaped the crash
with only minor injuries.

The EMTs who transported
him to the hospital

said he had been heavily drugged,

most likely ketamine, like the others.

Carl's a big guy. The unsub must
have gotten the dosage wrong.

Well, Carl doesn't remember much.

He recalls running down an alley,

seeing a van, getting inside.

We profiled he'd be unemployed.

It looks like our unsub's been living
out of this van for a while.

And what about before
you were drugged, Carl?

What's the last thing you recall?

I was waiting for the bus, right?

I just got done working at the shack.

My boss made me go home early

because he said I couldn't
stop sneezing and stuff.

I said it was just allergies,

but he made me go home anyway.

So I'm sitting there,
I'm checking my phone,

then this van pulls
up, blocks the bus stop.

I'm like, hey, you can't park here.

Then the door on the side opened,

and I got, like, yanked in and stuff.

Did you see your attacker?

Only out of the corner of my eye.

But this dude's like a damn weirdo, man.

He had some kind of freaky mask on

with some long black gloves.

Go ahead, Garcia.

I tracked the van via Vin
number... say that 3 times fast.

The vehicle was stolen from
Houston, Texas, 8 years ago.

After that, I got nada.

Well, there's no telling
if or how many times

it's changed hands since.

Can you get the police report

and track down the original owner?

Will do.

Hey, Garcia, anything from Prentiss?

My crazy covert sources say
that she was done with Barnes

a few hours ago,

but Emily's light is
still on in her office

and I can't tell if it's
a good thing or it's bad.

Well, she's probably just
catching up on paperwork.

Right. Totally. That's what
I was telling myself, too.

Yeah, ok. I'll hit you
back when I have more.

Thanks, Penelope.

Hey, guys,

given our geo-profile,

I think I have a pretty good guess

as to where our unsub has
been holding his victims.

Carl was headed east, right?

Medico della peste.

Jeremy Paulson and Carl Kevork

both described themselves as feeling
ill before they were abducted.

You think that's why he targeted them?

And it's his job to take care of them

before they contaminate others.

He's ridding the
streets of the infected.

Hey. Just, uh, checking
in to see how you're doing.

It's tough to remain calm

when someone's trying
to get under your skin.

This isn't an annual review?

Ostensibly, yes, but Barnes

has been through every
command decision I've made

since taking over as Unit Chief

and thrown them back at me,

including Stephen's death.

She's trying to rattle you.

Yeah. She's after something.

I just don't know what.

You know we've got your back, right?

I do.

So how can we help?

Solve this case.

Show Barnes we can
color within the lines.

Ok. Well, hang in there.

When I get back, drinks are on me.

Deal.

And, Emily,

don't let her push you around.

You've earned that seat.

So the unsub's trigger is sickness,

whether real or perceived.

Every victim we've IDed so far

had symptoms of either
a cold or allergy.

What about the dead
chickens in his lair?

I mean, they certainly point toward
some kind of ritual in my book.

They do, but not in the
way that you think.

Medieval medical practitioners

believed that chickens
could absorb illness.

They would rub the birds all
over the bodies of the diseased

in an attempt to rid
them of their sickness.

This is a venetian bird mask.

During the 17th century,

doctors would stuff these
with herbs and spices

and wear them to protect
against infection.

From the plague.

That along with
the burning of the bodies

and the burial ground,
Tremé cemetery number two,

and the fact it was originally built

to house victims who died
from cholera and smallpox,

tells us that this unsub
believes himself to be

a modern day plague doctor.

A vigilante or angel of death,

whose job it is to stop sick people

from spreading disease.

Our unsub wants to
eradicate not just the sick,

but the sickness within them.

In fact, it wasn't until the
middle of the 19th century

that humorism, the belief that illness

was caused by an imbalance

of the fluids in the
body, was discredited.

Before that, it was believed

that there were 4 humors in the body...

Black bile, yellow
bile, blood, and phlegm,

all of which were susceptible to miasma,

or bad air, that carried disease.

Our unsub's fixation on
these ancient medical practices

speaks to a very
specific kind of stressor.

It indicates a distrust
in modern medicine.

He or a loved one may
have suffered a loss

brought on by illness or disease.

Or he may blame modern medicine

for failing to save a loved one.

Our unsub was living
on the fringes of society.

His van was not just
his means of transport,

it was his whole life.

And now that he's lost it,

there's no telling what he'll do next.

The bacteria will get into the blood.

The bacteria will get into the blood.

The bacteria will get into the blood.

The bacteria

will get into the blood.

The bacteria has gotten into your blood.

What does that mean?

You're very sick.

The storms have brought forth

various plagues and diseases
we haven't seen in centuries.

Your immune system is weak.

A bad cold could land you
in intensive care or worse.

Get regular check-ups, take your meds.

Take care of yourself.

It's ok, Mama.

When I grow up, I'm
gonna become a doctor,

and I'll find a way to make you better.

A doctor? That'll suit you just fine.

It was their fault.

They didn't help her.

They didn't listen to
her. It was their fault.

They didn't help her!

It was their fault...

It was their fault!

It was them.

They didn't help.

I'd like to pick up where
we left off yesterday.

No. Let's not.

This is not about our
case in Mexico last year

or any other cases.

This is about you.

You want something.

I want the BAU to be held accountable

for its actions.

If you truly believe

that we acted inappropriately

or had evidence of a
crime that was committed,

you would have had me arrested.

The fact that you haven't

tells me that's not what you're after.

No?

No. Your specialty is remaking units

and divisions in your image...

Slimming them down,
dividing their resources,

so you can maximize their efficiency.

You want to make a name for yourself.

Everything about your demeanor says

"I want to be in charge."

And you project power not because
you fear you don't have it,

but because you can't get enough.

You want to be the director someday.

That's why we're here,

to appease your ego, your ambition.

Have you always had
issues with authority?

Better agents than you

have tried to split the BAU and failed.

Each time, the BAU has done its job,

and done it well, and so have I.

And you know what that's gotten me?

Respect,

support,

and capital.

So whatever game it is
you're trying to play here,

I want no part of it.

Why don't we take a break

before you say something
you will regret?

CSU techs believe the unsub

scrubbed the van clean
after each victim.

And while we did find some DNA,

it wasn't the windfall we were hoping.

For a guy living out of his van,

he sure kept things neat.

We found men and women's clothing

and personal belongings.

The items look to be dated,

but it certainly does speak to the fact

that the unsub lost someone...

Someone close, probably a wife or a mom,

maybe a sister.

We got nebulizers and
corticosteroids and a few others.

Some are current. Some
expired as far back as 2008.

No identifying information.

It looks like a year's
worth of medication.

This person was sick a long time.

That must have been tough to go through,

especially in close quarters.

You know, most of
these are used to treat

a lung condition or breathing ailment.

But this one, cholestyramine,
is interesting.

Cholestyramine has many off-label uses,

particularly as a binding
agent for biotoxins.

Biotoxins. Like mold or fungi?

Along with cyanobacteria,
dinoflagellates,

spirochetes, apicomplexans,
and mycotoxins,

all of which can make you very sick.

And these would be rare conditions?

Incredibly rare.

This could help Garcia
narrow down our search.

- I'll call her.
- Thank you.

Ok, so let's think about this.

He has no means of transportation,

and he has nowhere to take his victims,

so our unsub is starting over again.

So, what does he do now?

Does he steal another van?

No. Too risky.

This is a guy going
through the stages of grief.

So maybe anger's next.

Well, he could start to
lash out, focus his rage.

Especially if he finds
himself near a hospital

or a pharmacy. Anywhere
there's sick people.

Ok, let's put a warning
out to hospitals and clinics

to be on the lookout for
any suspicious persons

loitering in the area,

see if they can post extra security

at all entrances and exits.

- We'll get on it.
- Thank you.

Hi. I was just closing up for lunch.

Do you mind coming back in...

That woman was sick.

She was contaminated, and
you just let her leave.

Yes. I gave her some
medicine. Do you need...

That medicine can't help her.

She's contaminated.

You can't help her.

You couldn't help my mother.

No. All doctors do
is make people suffer,

make them live with false hope.

Sometimes people just
get sick, and there's...

My mother didn't just get sick!

She was made sick.

That bacteria got in her blood

and none of you did anything.

Aah! Stop it! Oh! No, no!

Get off...

So the burning was
postmortem, like the others?

Yes, but C.O.D. was a
stab wound to the back.

Well, just as we predicted.

This is our guy. He's
gone wildly off pattern.

Burned the clinic,
attacked the doctor here.

He's devolving.

Well, maybe he finally figured out

that killing sick people won't
stop the spread of disease.

The clinic was probably a stark reminder

of the failure of modern medicine.

It shows an evolution of thought,

and he's gone from putting the
blameless out of their misery

to punishing those in
the medical profession.

He's no longer on a mission
of mercy, that's for sure.

This could very quickly become

about finding that person that he thinks

is responsible for the loss he suffered.

Here you go.

Oh, thank you.

Of course.

I just keep sitting here,

hoping for a revelation.

Oh, this guy's elusive.

We found his home, secondary location,

means of transport but not his name.

He feels invisible.

But it couldn't have
always been the case,

you know?

At some point, this guy,

he had friends and family.

He lost someone important to him.

So what are you thinking?

This timeline.

We need to go back

to where it all started for our unsub,

with his first victim, Hunter Dillon.

Now that you've had a
chance to gather yourself...

I would like to get
back to the task at hand,

because I may be ambitious,

but I've read your file, Agent Prentiss,

and there's more of me in
you than you'd like to admit.

But the BAU is not infallible

and I'd like to talk about your team

and their role in all of this.

I'm the unit chief.
The buck stops with me.

Sure. But Agent Rossi has
just published another book.

He's been spending a lot
of time with his family.

Perhaps he hasn't always been
as focused as he could be.

And Agent Reid's been busy
with his teaching assignment.

Academia is a more natural fit

for an intellect like his.

I think even he would agree with that.

Wait. That's what this is,

a... fishing expedition?

My investigation has revealed

a pattern of negligence within the BAU.

You want me to give you a fall guy?

So the bureau can avoid some bad PR

and you can get a win.

You thought if you threatened my career

that I'd play ball.

Rossi put himself in charge

following your abduction.

Reid spent months in a federal prison.

Neither are good at following the rules.

They're indispensable.

They are loose cannons!

I am asking you to
sacrifice a couple of pieces

to save the whole board.

I stand by my team and
the actions we've taken.

We thought our unsub was on a
mission to cleanse the streets,

but it's way more complicated than that.

This whole ritual of his

is an act of mercy in his mind.

It didn't just come out of thin air.

I think he's been thinking about it,

preparing for it in some way.

Exactly. But we haven't found anything

connecting our unsub to the
first body, Hunter Dillon.

What if Hunter wasn't his first victim?

That would mean there's
another victim out there

we haven't identified.

Ok, so our unsub started

by putting people out of their misery,

saving them from their sickness.

What if the woman he lost, who was sick,

didn't just die,

but she was his first kill?

Then everything he's done since

would be about reliving that moment,

justifying that action.

These murders would be
about easing his own guilt.

There's plenty of evidence
of this woman in the van.

Just no DNA and no prints.

Ok, what about her belongings?

We have clothes and blankets.

A small jewelry box.

Some toiletries.

And this bouquet.

Why would someone keep
dead, rotting flowers?

It could be of personal significance,

an emotional attachment that overrides

his compulsion for cleanliness.

Ok, did the CSUs find any prints
or DNA on the plastic wrapping?

No. But the wrapping did have a label

that led to a flower shop.

The CSUs followed up
but came up empty-handed.

That's because they're not Penelope.

Garcia, we need your help.

Bring it.

Yes, I sent the flowers.

Tanesa Winters was my neighbor.

I was devastated

when I got the word that she passed.

How long have you known Tanesa?

Oh, gosh, a long time.

I met her after Katrina.

She was struggling to get back
on her feet after the storm.

For a while, she even
lived in a rooming house

over on Fig and 44th.

When was that?

Oh, about 10 years ago.

But then something happened.

The building got condemned.

Tanesa came into some money.

Uh-huh. And her son Kevon
came to stay with her.

They lived right over there.

I tried to help her when I could. But...

They fell on hard times?

Couldn't afford to keep
up with their bills.

They said that Tanesa died in her sleep.

I hope she finally found some peace.

And thank you so much
for talking to us, Edna.

We need to find out everything
we can about Kevon Winters.

She said something
happened 10 years ago. 2008.

That's when the medication in
the unsub's van dates back to.

I wonder if that's when Tanesa got sick.

Talk to me, my pretties.

What can you tell us

about Tanesa and Kevon Winters?

Ok. Tanesa Winters.

She died 3 weeks ago.

She's survived by her son Kevon.

It looks like he was
born in New Orleans.

Uh, he spent some time in Houston,

but he returned at some point,

because I've got a
local college transcript

and a notice from a collection agency.

Kevon dropped out of school,

thousands of dollars in debt.

That's when the trail goes cold.

We also need information
on this flophouse.

It was condemned about 10 years ago.

It's on 44th and Fig.

I can tell you it's not there anymore.

It's now a coffee shop.

Let me take a deep dive here

and see what secret secrets I can find.

We believe Tanesa Winters lived there

for a short time.

Yeah, she did.

The tenants there filed a civil suit.

It looks like Tanesa was
the primary plaintiff.

They sued for negligence
and bodily harm.

That building sustained a lot of damage

after the flooding caused by Katrina.

Let me guess. It was never
properly cleaned or vented.

It was not.

Tanesa became very
ill due to black mold.

The residents repeatedly asked
for the building, to be inspected

and the landlord and the
insurance companies ignored them.

That's it. That's the unsub's stressor.

That's the root of all of this.

What ever happened to the
landlord who owned the building?

Walter Trudeau paid
out a modest settlement

and went on to become
a local business mogul.

He owns a lot of property in the area.

If the unsub is now directing his anger

to those he holds responsible

for failing to help his mother,

Walter Trudeau will be on that list.

Yeah, we need to warn him.

Penelope, can you get
ahold of Mr. Trudeau

and let him know that
we'd like to speak to him?

And send us...

His home and work address?

It's like I do this for a living.

And... Oh! Flag on the play.

Sports reference.

Trudeau spends a lot of
time at a bar he owns.

I'm sending you the address now.

Garcia, before you go,
find out what you can

about Tanesa Winters' death,
specifically the cause.

Copy that. Here it comes.

All right, thanks.

So you think I'm in trouble.

Well, you may be targeted

because of this prior
lawsuit and your history

with the Winters family.

This was over 10 years ago.

People have moved on. They've rebuilt.

It's what my lawyers call
taking personal responsibility.

Walter Trudeau,

show yourself!

Hey! What are you doing?

Ohh! Aah! Ugh! Uh!

Walter Trudeau!

Trudeau, come or I will
burn this place to the ground!

There's no telling how much
gasoline vapor's in the air.

We take a shot, we could throw

this whole room up in flames.

We got to approach this tactically.

Let's get the fire
department out here asap.

What can I do? What can I do?

Nothing. Just stay out of
sight. Let us do our job.

Is that another way downstairs?

Yeah. It's the fire escape.

It takes you around back.

All right, Dave, I'll buy us time.

I'm on it.

Yes, sir.

Garcia, what did you find out

about Tanesa Winters' death?

Kevon Winters.

Don't come any further. Stop.

I'm SSA Jennifer Jareau.

Where's Trudeau?

Kevon, I...

I understand you lost
your mother recently.

I'm... I'm so sorry.

My... my husband lost
his dad to Katrina.

The storm didn't take my mother.

It was Trudeau.

That building wasn't safe, and he knew.

They all knew!

The doctors, the insurance companies,

but it was Trudeau.

He hid it from us. He lied.

And if he would have done
what he was supposed to do,

my mother would have never gotten sick.

She'd still be here!

You're right. Trudeau
didn't do the right thing.

He didn't, but you... you can, ok?

You can let this innocent man go.

No, no, no, no! He has to face me!

Move.

I'm sorry about your mother.

Don't. Don't you dare!

Her death was a tragedy.

It was your fault,

and now it's your turn to suffer!

Hey, you don't want to do this.

It's his turn to lose something!

Trudeau didn't kill your mother, Kevon.

We read the coroner's report.

It said she died in her sleep,

but that's not the whole story, is it?

It was you.

You gave her...

A lethal dose of ketamine.

I should have been stronger.

But I couldn't lose
her. She was all I had.

And I let her suffer.

No. I...

- Ugh! Aah!
- Ok.

It's ok, son. It's ok.

It's ok, son, it's ok.

It's ok. It's ok. It's ok.

It's ok.

Aah!

It's ok.

"All of us labor in webs"

"spun long before we were born."

William Faulkner.

Not bad for the first
time steering the ship.

Prentiss would be proud.

Have you heard from Emily?

No.

I, uh, I texted her

to let her know we were
on our way back, but...

I'll be glad when this is all over.

Yeah.

Hey.

How was the case?

We got our guy.

I heard you did a fantastic job.

How did it go with Barnes?

I have an announcement to make.

I have been suspended from active duty.

I've turned in my badge and my gun.

What... I don't understand.

For how long?

Indefinitely.

JJ will continue being
acting unit chief,

but as of today,

Assistant Director Linda Barnes

will be personally overseeing the unit.

Are we under investigation?

Yes, we are under investigation.

And I tried, but with the suspension,

I can't protect you.

I'm sorry.