A bystander offers to help, but Hotch says there is nothing for him to do.

Why aren't they coming to help? FLASHBACK: 'The goal is always to take out a first round of civilians, followed by a second wave of emergency responders,' Kate explains to the team. Cop cars and an ambulance scream around the corner, but stop well shy of the scene. No, her legs are NOT moving - but Hotch doesn't have the heart to tell her. Her body has been thrown from the vehicle. Hotch tries to see into the vehicle - and then notices Kate lying in the street. Somewhere, seemingly far away, an emergency bell rings. But which one? Hotch, his face scratched and bleeding, stands in the middle of the street. The members climb into SUVs and one of the cars BLOWS UP. The would-be terrorists seem to have something personal against the BAU team. But that's not the end of their vile scheme, folks. Hooded unsubs are shooting civilians near bridges and public transit stations in order to test police response times. The outcome of this case could affect Morgan's career path. The team do not yet realize that other things beyond what Garcia saw on camera are far more dangerous to Hotch and Joyner and the population of New York in general despite the team feeling that the car bomb is just too minor an incident in and of itself.

Garcia catches some interesting images at the bomb site which could compromise Hotch and Joyner's safety. She knows her chances of survival are slim as the emergency responders were previously ordered not to attend such incidents because of the possible terrorist second wave hit. Joyner on the other hand is severely injured. Just outside the vehicle, Hotch is injured with a severe ringing in his ears from the explosion, is shocked, but is alive and mobile. But a car bomb has just exploded close to the New York FBI headquarters, that car belonging to Joyner. The BAU now believe that the subway killings were conducted by several people as part of a larger terrorist plot, those killings just a test for a wider mass attack to come.

His Vegas Bomb by Derek Masters