Original subtitles

I want to ride the spotty one.

Well, we'll see.

Hey, are you hungry?

Why don't you get us something?

Yeah.

Come on, let's go.

We'll be back.

What's his name?

I don't know.

I'd call him Spicy.

What about that one?

Sugar?

Sugar and Spice?

Spicy.

It's too scratchy.

Itchy. It's itchy.

That's why you're scratching.

Lindsay!

Lindsay! Lindsay!

Lindsay! Has anyone seen my daughter?!

Ohh!

Lindsay! Help!

Aimee?

Aimee?

Aimee?

Aimee?

Aimee?!

Oh, my God.

Barbara, what's going on?

She was just right here. She's not here.

Did she come to you guys?

No. Where is she?

She was just right here.

Aimee! Aimee!

What do you mean, she's gone?

Which way did she go?

I don't know.

Aimee!

Mrs. Lynch?

We're with the FBI.

Is this the most recent photo you have of Aimee?

Yes.

Aimee Lynch, 8 years old,

was taken, an hour ago, from a Winter festival in Ashburn.

Any witnesses? Her mom, Barbara,

was right next to her, when she vanished.

There must have been hundreds of people there.

No one saw anything?

It's a temporary gathering,

with little to no security.

All right, Reid, you and I

are going to head to the family's house.

The two of you, I want you to work with Garcia.

We need to look at every local abduction,

or attempted one, in the past year,

see if there's any overlap.

Good news is that we're barely into the second hour.

Yeah, well, odds are, we've only got 22 hours to find Aimee alive,

so let's do this.

Aimee Lynch, of Ashburn, was last seen at the Winter festival

this morning at 10:00.

She's 4'8", has blonde hair and green eyes.

With temperatures below freezing, and a chance of snow,

the pressure is on to find her.

Anyone with information about Aimee,

please contact the hotline.

Uh, excuse me.

I'd like to talk to Agent Jareau.

Can I help you?

Whoever took Aimee Lynch took my son, too.

Ashburn has a Winter Festival every year,

not a single attempt at kidnapping.

Hey, JJ, there's a woman here who says her son

was abducted by the same offender.

Has she been drinking?

Yeah, I'm pretty sure. How'd you know that?

Sarah Hillridge. She lost her son, Charlie, 8 years ago.

She comes in every time a child around his age goes missing.

She thinks her son is still alive.

Yeah, I know.

I remember her. She stays for the first 24 hours, right?

Yeah.

8 hours left.

Need more coffee?

Oh, no, no. I'm fine, thanks.

Ohh. What's Henry, he's 16 months?

Uh, 17.

Uh, how's your daughter?

Uh, Jake took her away.

What?

Well, he got remarried, and, uh,

thought it was best for Emily to get a fresh start.

Sorry.

Well, I can't really blame him.

I mean, look at me.

Sarah, I really need...

This little girl Aimee was 8, just like Charlie.

They were taken almost 8 years apart.

Now, I have been doing a lot of reading about sexual attraction

and know that prepubescence has the greatest range

and also a really huge crossover gender-wise.

I'm sorry you know all of that.

I could have gone my whole life without knowing,

but then someone took my son.

It's OK.

I'm not gonna hurt you.

Come here.

Come on, come here.

What's your name?

You gotta tell me your name before they give you a new one.

What are you doing?

What do you think you're doing?

It's not fair. Let her go!

I've had enough of you!

You will not talk to me like that!

You will never talk to me like that again!

OK. Got it.

Aimee's mom was distracted by a mother looking for her daughter,

and she's blaming herself for looking away.

Wait. Sarah... Sarah said the same thing when Charlie was taken.

There was a mother searching for her lost son.

Do you think... do you think it's a coincidence?

Or what? A ruse?

A woman looking for her lost son...

That's pretty specific, right?

Add to that a target-rich environment

- With no security? - Yeah.

OK, so, if the woman was a distraction, who took Aimee?

A partner?

Well, if it's the same people,

they've been doing this for close to a decade.

I told you.

Nietzsche wrote,

"Hope is the worst of evils,

For it prolongs the torment of men."

So that's it, then?

No, it isn't.

Well, why are you leaving?

Every available cop in the state is out looking for your daughter.

Who's been gone for more than 24 hours.

I think we both know what that means.

Percentile-wise we do,

but every case is based on its own merit.

Well, what merit is this case?

Sir, Aimee was taken at high risk by whoever took her.

It means it was organized, meticulously planned,

and likely more than one person.

And this suggests they intend on keeping her.

Keeping her? For what?

Frank?

Keeping her means that she's alive,

and I think that's really

all you need to focus on, right now.

Are you leaving?

Ma'am, our profile remains,

as do hundreds of officers and many agents looking for your daughter.

Now, if there's any information

pertaining to Aimee, then we'll be back.

Mr. Lynch, I think you should know

that nothing could have stopped these people

from taking your daughter.

Yeah.

Well, I would have never let go of her hand.

Frank, please.

Frank.

We've done all we can.

It doesn't make walking away any easier.

No, it doesn't.

They want to call you Alison.

But that's not my name.

What is it?

I'm not supposed to talk to strangers.

I'm not a stranger.

I'm your brother.

Why did you bring me here?

They call me David.

I want my mommy.

Tell me your name.

Aimee.

OK, Aimee.

Look, we all think that Aimee could be alive.

No one's given up on her.

That's why there's hundreds of volunteers and officers

combing every inch of the county.

But they're dragging the rivers and digging up the woods.

That's not gonna help us if Aimee is still with the unsub,

if she's still alive out there.

What about Charlie?

Is he still alive?

Sarah believes it.

8 years she's been saying the same thing, JJ.

Have you thought about why you suddenly believe her?

Do you think it might be because you're a mother?

It's... it's because another woman

just walked in here, with the same exact ruse

used 8 years ago.

I can't deny that. Can you?

All I'm saying is, if we go from a single abduction

to multiple abductions over 10 years,

that changes everything.

We all have to be convinced that's what it is,

based on an unbiased profile.

OK. Distraction of a lost child.

8-year-old victims taken from public places

with little to no security.

That's not just the same ruse.

That's a signature.

And I'm not a mother.

Charlie would be 16 now.

We all know that preferential offenders

typically dispose of their victims

before they reach puberty.

Maybe he serves another purpose.

Aimee's mom said the unsub was slight.

It wouldn't be easy to keep a teenager under her thumb.

Except that she's had him since he was 8 years old.

By now, he's completely submissive to her.

Keeping him could explain

why Charlie's body was never found.

Garcia.

Sir.

Go back 10 years, nationwide.

Start with abductions in target-rich environments.

Rule out any with bodily recovery, dead or alive.

I'm gonna let Sarah know.

OK.

We need to check out Aimee's abduction site

with new eyes.

They're home.

Who is?

Do what they say. OK?

It'll make it easier.

David!

What are you doing in here?

Taking pictures again?

Now get the hell out of here!

Get out.

Well...

looks like somebody's been sleeping

in Goldilocks' bed.

What have we got under here?

Let's take a little look-see.

Well, hello there.

Whoo-ooh!

I just want to go home.

Ohh... you are home, Alison.

A 3-car pileup on the 66

has traffic backed up both ways.

Police are asking drivers to find alternate routes.

Sarah?

Back to you, Jane.

Thanks, Bill.

Aimee Lynch was last seen wearing a winter coat...

Sarah, it's Jennifer.

She was with her family at the Winter Festival.

in Ashburn.

The family has not put out a statement yet,

as the authorities are handling the case.

Anyone with information about Aimee,

please contact the hotline.

Sarah?

Not hard to profile, is it?

You think I'm insane?

No.

What do you think?

I think the same thing you do.

What do you mean?

I think the same people that took Aimee

took Charlie.

I want to show you something.

Since 2000, over 200 children's bodies have not been found.

- Nationwide. - What about Virginia?

Of the missing and presumed dead, there are 12.

Uh, Charlie's been on that list for 8 years,

Aimee just joined it.

So Aimee was taken from Ashburn,

Charlie from Leesburg, 8 years ago,

both within a half mile of the highway.

What about the others?

Karla Hartaway was abducted in 1999,

Age 8, from Garrison.

Stephen Shepherd, abducted in 2003, also 8, from Arlington.

Danny Kenman...

Abducted June 12, at 4:00 from the mall.

Parents divorced.

He's still missing.

What do the flowers mean?

They were all found dead.

But all the rest are still missing.

Like Tracey Cain, 9,

she vanished from a park, both parents present.

And then, Jake Wusman, abducted September 29,

from Rock Creek Park.

He was with his entire family. They were on a picnic.

And then there's...

Sarah.

If you're gonna help us,

I need you to do something for me.

Anything.

Stop drinking.

I can do that. I can do that.

Shouldn't we bring Barbara back here?

No, she's given us all she can.

Let's go through it.

OK. She was standing about here, right?

It's crowded. Families all around.

Are you hungry?

Come on. Let's get something.

The unsubs are watching, waiting for the best target.

I want to ride the spotty one.

It's too scratchy.

Then she hears it.

Lindsay! Lindsay!

Lindsay! Has anyone seen my daughter?!

By the time she turns around, Aimee's gone.

The mother who just cried wolf moves off.

She can hear Barbara crying out for Aimee, but...

Aimee can't answer

Because the unsub has her face buried in his chest.

To passersby, it'd look like any parent

carrying a crying child.

30 seconds later,

she's concealed in a vehicle...

And they're gone.

The same one rolls up on our mother,

she gets in, it's done.

Who's driving it?

It took 3 unsubs to pull this off.

If the same people took Charlie,

we're looking for a group.

Well, if they've taken 2 or more children,

over an 8-year period, somebody must have noticed something.

How do they keep the victims hidden?

Once we figure that out, we'll find them.

The unsubs?

And the children.

Beautiful, aren't they?

Thank you.

I planted each and every one of them myself.

I like to think of these roses

as the souls of the forgotten.

Like... this poor young man here.

Hotch, uh, this is Sarah Hillridge.

Oh, we met when Charlie was taken.

I mean, you know, you saw a lot of us.

I'm sure we all look the same.

Thank you for coming in. Have a seat.

All right, these represent kids

taken from public places.

Locations are never hit more than once,

but there is similarity in each.

Different malls, toy stores,

carnivals, theme parks, parades.

Places where families should feel safe.

And where there isn't much security.

That's 12 children over 10 years?

We should interview all the families.

I know a few of them.

We had a support group.

I mean, most of them have moved on.

But you're here.

I saw Charlie 3 years ago.

You didn't tell me that.

Well, my husband didn't believe me. Why would you?

Tell us what happened.

At first, I saw him all the time.

I thought I did, and from what I understand,

that's normal.

But you can't survive that way.

So, Jake and I promised that we would move on.

But a few years later, I saw him.

I mean, it was different.

I mean, in my mind he had never aged,

But this was a teenage Charlie crossing the street.

And as quick as he was there, he was gone again,

but I know I saw him.

Jake didn't believe me.

That was the day he left me.

What did you do when you saw Charlie?

I called for him.

Charlie!

How did you know it was him?

Ohh!

Well, I didn't, not for sure, so I called for him again.

Charlie!

Did he hear you?

He looked back.

And your husband didn't see him?

Charlie.

It was crowded. He disappeared.

I lost him all over again.

We'll be asking those parents

to sign up for all that pain again.

If they've moved on...

They'd take the chance, if it meant their kids were alive.

Just flare up that hair a little bit more,

and it went farther down his neck.

Yeah. His... his eyebrows are not quite as full.

Stephen's been missing 7 years?

In February.

He'd be 15 now.

And you last saw him in the toy section?

That's Sarah Hillridge?

Do you know her?

We were friends.

We were in a support group together.

Stephen was taken the year after Charlie.

You know she's crazy?

Leave her alone.

She is.

No, sir, I don't know that.

Wishing for your boy to come home is one thing.

She threw her whole life away.

Her husband's a good man,

and she's got a daughter who she can't even...

Why would she ruin that?

Hope can be paralyzing, sir.

We believe that the people who took Aimee Lynch

have been doing this for a very long time.

The little girl yesterday?

In the moments before your son was taken,

did anything stand out?

Like what?

Anything at all that drew your attention away from him?

Just for a moment,

but I never thought anything about it. That woman.

Looking for her son.

I helped her.

Oh, God.

She even thanked me for helping.

Ma'am, you couldn't have known.

She was right in front of me.

How could she have taken Stephen?

Because she's not working alone.

They've used this ruse in a dozen local abductions.

Is that why we're here?

They've done this to all of us?

Do you think there's a chance Stephen's still alive?

How many are there?

You're the fourth.

But there have been others.

Where are they?

Someplace better.

They're gonna get us for supper.

But I'm not hungry.

What's your favorite food?

Ice cream?

Pretend it's ice cream

and eat it all up.

OK?

I want my mommy.

You're in good hands.

There's no one better than them.

I know.

I let go of her hand.

It was only for a second,

but she's always been the one that I'm worried about.

You can't blame yourself.

Frank does.

And he's right. I should have held on.

Aimee's wandered off before, and...

there's this feeling, when they're out of your sight.

It takes your breath away, until you see them again.

And I think that's why I can't breathe.

11 families have confirmed the same woman,

40 to 50 years old, calling for children.

In some cases, she even had a child with her.

She actually used the kids for the abductions?

Were they her own or the ones kidnapped?

We don't believe she's a mother.

Most predisposed female offenders are not.

But they are the most violent.

Y-you said that she's working with someone?

It's likely a subservient male.

But the woman separates herself from her partners.

She chooses the victim while they do the riskiest part...

They grab the child and manage the getaway.

This is what he looks like as a teenager.

Um... um, he's tall and thin.

His hair is, um, darker than it was.

But... but that's him.

That's... that's Charlie.

Why would they take the risk

of letting him out in the world?

They've had him in their control for 8 years.

He's either got Stockholm or he's being threatened.

"Get us another kid

and we won't kill you."

Sarah...

let's take a break, OK?

OK. OK.

Thank you. Thank you.

All right.

So living and working in northern Virginia.

It's most likely in isolation.

I mean, there's no way to explain a houseful of kids

at the neighborhood block party.

Managing this many children isn't easy.

And there have to be incidents where things didn't go as planned.

We should start with domestic calls and disturbances.

Concentrate on families who were visited by Social Services.

I'll get Garcia.

It's likely these unsubs were questioned before.

Once we narrow down Garcia's list, we should revisit them.

What they've been doing to Charlie this whole time,

oh, there were times that I had hoped he was dead

Just so he wouldn't suffer every day.

We know these offenders are skilled at abductions

and hiding their victims.

Usually, we don't know that, until after the fact.

What you've brought us, to them, is rare.

I know, but it's not gonna end well for all of us.

I recognize him. He was there.

When we were in line.

He was too old for the ponies. I should have known that.

He was a few people behind us.

You saw him, too.

Yeah. He seemed like a normal kid.

He's still alive.

Wait, this is your son?

Charlie.

Your son took my baby?

Mrs. Lynch... your son took Aimee?

Honey, come on.

He's... he's one of them.

He's taking innocent children.

Aimee is 8 years old. She can't defend herself.

And he knew that!

He watched her!

He's as bad as the rest of them.

She's right.

No, no, no. Charlie didn't have a choice.

He's one of them now. How is he ever going to forget that?

He's just trying to survive.

OK.

Oh, my God.

Please stay with me.

She'll check on you.

Please.

Just for a minute.

Hey.

Who let you in here?

Please, take me. Don't hurt her.

No...

please don't leave me.

OK, 107 families

visited by Social Services in the last 10 years.

That's too many to go door to door.

We're gonna have to narrow that down.

We need to figure out why they're staying

in northern Virginia.

Their work could be the key.

They could have a child-care facility on the premises, as a cover.

You know, it's most likely a single-income family.

Someone has to be home to stay with the kids.

OK, all this helps.

They've been questioned before,

so we can expect a rehearsed response.

How many on that list are single income?

23.

What's the problem?

We're gonna be knocking on the doors of 23 families

and all of them have done something bad to a kid.

We don't have a warrant.

Just our profile.

If we get it wrong and leave that house,

they'll destroy any evidence they have, including the children.

JJ, get an article of Aimee's clothing.

What for?

It's for the dogs.

Leave it alone.

No, I can't.

Yes, you can.

8 years?

There's a moment,

in the morning, just as I wake up...

where there's a split-second of peace.

And then it all comes back.

All of it.

Yeah. I haven't slept yet.

I hope you get her back before you need to.

If you didn't believe for all those years

that your son was still alive,

none of us would be here now.

I would have felt if he was gone.

I need an item of Aimee's clothing.

Why?

She... she never put it back on.

Thank you.

Mr. Jenkins, we're with the FBI.

We'd like to ask you a few questions.

We're going door to door. You must be our... what do you think?

40th, 50th door, I don't know.

Do you mind if we come in?

Mr. Hayden, how many children do you have?

5... one on the way.

And where are they now?

Mr. Hayden.

I'm sorry?

I said, you've got a lot of land here.

Ah. Mm-hmm.

And a houseful of kids.

Yes, I do.

It's awfully quiet.

Are they out?

My wife took them out.

At the Winter Festival?

Winter Festival?

In Ashburn.

No. Uh, but that's a wonderful idea.

I'll mention that to my wife.

Might be nice for the kids.

They have pony rides.

Oh, great.

So, uh, do the kids take after your wife?

Some say they do.

Uh... how can I help you?

Oh, we were actually hoping that your wife would be here.

Do you know when she'll be back?

She's got the kids out on a field trip.

The children just love Sunday drives.

Shh. If you make a sound,

I'll kill your mommy.

Do you understand me?

Come over here.

Clean out your room.

Now.

Uh, I can get her back here.

Please. If you don't mind.

I need to step outside.

Excuse me.

Why don't you go on ahead and, uh,

make that phone call.

Hotch?

What have you got?

We are at 2115 Mosley Lane.

Only the husband is here. Roger Roycewood.

Wife and kids?

Yeah. Out.

He matches the profile?

So does the property.

It's isolated. You can't see it from the street.

They have extra locks on the doors.

There's a minivan in the driveway

and a photo of a boy who looks a lot like Charlie.

Is he onto you?

Without a doubt.

We're on our way.

Search warrant?

And dogs. If the kids are anywhere near,

or in the house, we'll find them.

Uh, voicemail again.

I suppose y'all could come back later.

I think we both know that's not gonna happen.

OK, let's go. Shh. Keep quiet.

- Where's Stephen? - She took him away.

Is that because he wouldn't go to the carnival?

I said you'd see him. Get in there.

Shh. Shh.

Shut up.

Well, I guess you got your warrant.

And ground-penetrating radar.

We will find where you buried them.

Will that hurt the roses?

The radar?

Officer.

Security camera on the front door.

What?

It's a hinge.

Let's get the dogs down here.

Give me that sack.

What is this place?

I don't know.

What's that?

Is that Aimee Lynch?

They dyed her hair.

There's none of Charlie.

He probably took these pictures.

For what?

Proof.

What about their work? We thought it could be tied

to what they do for a living.

Employment records, taxes, it's all legit.

Roger's an electrician, has been since forever.

What about the wife?

As far as I can tell, she stays at home.

I'm crossing these same records with her maiden name,

Anita Weld Roycewood. I don't think I'm gonna find anything,

and I'm rarely wrong, so...

I'm wrong.

Her family owns a funeral home in Leesburg.

You're less than 10 minutes from it.

Oh, God. The funeral home's been in the Weld family

since she was a little girl.

Hearses, coffins, vans,

a million ways to hide the children.

We can't dig up 10 years of coffins.

You might not have to.

They have a crematorium.

What are we doing here?

What's happening?

Put her in there.

I said put her in there!

No, no...

No... no...

No, no, no...

No, no, no, no...

No, no, no, no...

Shut her up.

No!

Did you hear me?!

No...

Forget it.

No, no...

Shh.

Come on.

That's a girl.

Come on.

Come on over here, now.

Shh. Be mama's big girl.

No... no...

No, no! No!

Come on. Come on.

Let her go!

Come on, you gotta be kidding...

She can't hurt us anymore.

All right. Thanks.

They found the kids.

Time to arrest Roger Roycewood.

Who gets the honors?

- Where is he? - In the bathroom.

How are you doing?

Honestly, I'm terrified.

I've waited 8 years.

What if he doesn't know me?

How long have you been doing this, Dr. Reid?

5 years, 7 months, and 19 days.

In your experience, what normally happens?

Charlie was 8 when he was taken,

which means developmentally, he was in middle childhood.

He had a stronger sense of right and wrong

and a growing understanding of his place in the world.

Mentally, he had the ability to talk about his thoughts and feelings,

while have less focus on himself and more concern for others.

So you think he's gonna be OK?

With a mother like you, who did all this,

I do.

I'm a doctor. I put my faith in facts

and statistical probabilities,

but today,

8 parents are gonna have closure.

3 children are going home with their families,

all because you believed your son was alive.

That's as close to a miracle as I've ever seen.

Thank you.

Hey. Hey.

We heard they're on their way back,

but we don't know if Stephen's with them.

Ohh...

Jake.

Thanks for calling.

You, uh, need to thank her.

You look so happy.

You found him.

You did it.

Charlie.

Mom.

Charlie.

I knew Stephen.

He was like a brother to me.

Did he remember us?

You didn't doubt that, did you?

Remembering you was the only way we survived.

How old was Stephen when...

when he died?

He died protecting that little girl.

Oh, God.

He was alive yesterday?

No...

No...

I have been trying to think of something to say,

and thank you just doesn't even come close.

You don't have to thank us.

Yes, I do.

Do you know how long it's been

since someone believed in me?

You are just surrounded by darkness.

Why do you do it?

Because of days like this.

Emily Dickinson wrote,

"Hope is the thing with feathers,

that perches in the soul,

and sings the tune without words,

and never stops at all."