Exculpation

A CM fanfic

PG+ Reid

First in a series of episode tags for 12.22 'Red Light'

©mccabebabe (Reidfan)

thanks and a big shout out to Aut for the usual speedy beta read and idea bouncing, and to Droogie for lending a name.

"If you can't face it, you can't heal it. If you don't say it, you will never come to grips with it." Iyanla Vanzant

"What defines us is how well we rise after falling."Zig ZIglar

He was still in the shower. A quick glance at her watch and her eyebrows rose. Almost an hour, she bit her lip. Almost an hour he'd spent trying to wash off the sweat and trepidation, the shame and humiliation, the anger and the indignity of prison. Wrongful incarceration. Followed by several hours of confrontation, a mental battle mostly, with the mastermind, the woman who'd been behind it all. After the first few minutes of hot water spraying down on him, any actual residue would have been cleared away; it was obvious it was now more symbolic than anything else.

She turned and stepped back into the largest of the safe house's three bedrooms to check on her patient. A small smile crossed her lips as she took in the sight of the peacefully sleeping Diana Reid. She didn't know all the details, just that Diana had been abducted by the imposter nurse—apparently the mastermind's partner—and had spent most of the last two days trussed up in the trunk of a car before being unceremoniously manhandled and dumped on a bed in the remote cabin belonging to the imposter's lackey. Involuntarily, a shudder ran up her spine. A harrowing ordeal for anyone, she thought, but even more so for an Alzheimer's patient who was also schizophrenic.

She tucked a blanket in around Diana's shoulders and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind her. There were four agents on Security Detail, stationed in and around the house, cameras everywhere and she had requested and received a personal alarm for Diana. Nobody, she was assured, would be able to penetrate the fortress protecting Spencer and Diana Reid.

Returning to the kitchen, she made herself a mug of tea and then made her way into the living room and sat down on the sofa to enjoy it. They'd arrived at the safe house a few hours ago. Emily Prentiss had made the request for a security-vetted caregiver for Diana Reid. The FBI contacted had contacted her and two agents had picked her up from her own apartment to meet the Reids at the safe house. En route, they'd apprised her of as much relevant information as they could and she'd thoroughly familiarised herself with Diana Reid's medical history. She was delighted to note that Diana was a lover of classic literature.

"Finally!" she'd thought aloud, "Someone to talk Shakespeare with!"

Their initial introduction had gone well. "Mom, this is Grace O'Halloran, she's going to be your new day nurse. She's gone through all the security checks and she'll be here to take care of you most days now. You'll meet the night nurse in a couple of days."

Grace extended a hand and after a brief hesitation, Diana took it, and acknowledged, "It's very nice to meet you. I hope I'm not too much trouble."

Grace smiled in return, "I'm sure you are no trouble at all, Diana. We'll have lots of time to talk and get to know each other, but you must simply be exhausted right now. Would you like a cup of tea or something before you go to bed?"

Diana's eyes lit up and she nodded.

"Chamomile?"

"Oh! Yes, please!"

"All right then, I'm just going to go make that while the agents here have a moment with you, okay?"

Reid was heartened by the manner in which Diana accepted the new nurse. As good as Cassie had been with her, Diana hadn't warmed up to her immediately as she did Grace. His mother nodded and Grace moved off to the kitchen to make the tea. One of the agents stepped towards Diana and knelt down to her level, holding a small pendant on a chain out to her.

As tired as Diana was from her ordeal, she listened attentively as the Security Agent explained the personal alarm to her and sat still as Spencer put it around her neck.

"So, Mom, if you run into a problem, if you're suddenly lost or scared, you just push this button okay?" he pointed it out to her and she nodded.

"Try it now," he directed.

"Are you sure, Spencer? I don't wanna cause any trouble."

"You are not causing trouble, Mom. I just want you to see how it works."

"Okay, baby," she agreed, and pushed the button.

Immediately, an alert tone sounded. It sounded from Reid's pocket, in the Security Detail's earpiece and from Grace's pocket.

Diana looked around in confusion until Spencer explained, "It sends a message to my phone, and to them," he waved to indicate the agents. He pulled his phone from his pocket and acknowledged the alert then replaced the phone and continued, "And also to Grace's phone. That way, we will always know you need help right away."

She nodded but couldn't quite stifle a yawn and Grace arrived at that moment with the tea.

"It works," she smiled, waving her phone and Diana nodded again. "And I think I will take you off to bed now, Diana. You can sip your tea and have a good sleep and tomorrow, you and I are going to discuss Troilus and Cressida."

"Oh that will be fun!" Diana enthused, and immediately stood up to follow Grace to her bedroom. She paused after taking just one step and turned to envelope Spencer in a hug again.

"Good night Spencer."

"I love you, Mom. Good night."

He turned around, letting the water spray down onto his back as he lathered shampoo into his too-long hair again. He sighed deeply, inhaled then exhaled slowly, appreciating the abundance of hot water, and most especially the fact that there were no guards—or other prisoners—watching him. He tilted his head back and leaned into the cascade of water, allowing it to first rinse the shampoo out of his hair and then stream down his face. He afforded himself the luxury of closing his eyes—something he would never have done in the communal shower of prison—and letting his mind wander.

Reid took a facecloth from the shower caddy and soaked it in the spray. As he brought it up to his face, he suddenly found himself trembling and let out a small gasp. Memories of being gagged with a towel while Duerson and Frazier administered his beating flashed through his mind and he drew a succession of shallow breaths as he backed away from the shower spray shivering. For several long moments, he revisited being restrained and repeatedly punched and the fear that they were going to kill him. He slumped down to the floor of the bathtub and panted heavily, trying to shake off the nightmare. As he regained control and returned to the present, he pulled the shower curtain aside and threw the offending face cloth towards the pedestal basin across the bathroom from the tub.

He'd have to write this in his journal and report it to his therapist Dr. Mathieson he realised. Standing up, he soaped his hands up and washed his face again, hoping to wash away the memory of Frazier and Duerson hurting him.

"It's not so bad," he remembered telling Luis the day after he'd been beaten. "It's not so bad," he murmured aloud.

Fifteen minutes later, he was dressed in pajamas and padded out to the living area. Grace was seated on the sofa and he slipped into the empty seat next to her.

"Would you like a cup of tea, Spencer?"

"Thank you, no. I'm just coming by to say goodnight. It's been, it's been a long, long day and I'm just drained."

He was trembling slightly, she noticed and furrowed her brow.

"You okay?" she asked.

He nodded. She wasn't convinced but she let it slide.

"It's almost three a-m," she commiserated. "You must be spent."

He nodded, rose from the seat and sighed, "I'm done, I haven't slept a whole night in three months, I'm—" a yawn broke into his words.

"Beyond exhausted. Get some sleep, Spencer, don't set an alarm, I will look after your mom in the morning." She rose, reached out to touch his arm and indicated he should go off to bed, propelling him slightly towards the bedroom.

He smiled his thanks and headed off. Grace sat back down on the sofa and filled out a report before finishing her own tea and retiring to the small bedroom they had set aside for her use.

Just after 8 am the following morning, Grace made her way into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee. After pulling a tray from a drawer, she retrieved sugar from a cupboard and cream from the refrigerator and set them on the tray. She added a number of spoons and mugs, found the service carafe and then set the laden tray aside.

Grace padded over to Diana's room and quietly opened the door. Silently, she stepped to Diana's bedside and checked on her patient. The older woman was nestled snugly under her blankets and was sleeping soundly as evidenced by her gentle snoring. Grace smiled and left as quietly as she'd entered, happy that her patient was enjoying a long restful sleep.

She wondered if Spencer's sleep was as calm and peaceful and dared to open the door to his bedroom to look. He was on his side; his back up against the wall and the sheet and blankets all twisted and askew around him. Although he was sleeping, it appeared to be a fitful sleep. Grace could hear his laboured breathing. He muttered something unintelligible, his body suddenly went rigid and then one hand shot up towards his face, as though to block a blow. He turned his head and just as quickly, the tension disappeared from his body and after a moment, he appeared to have gotten past the nightmare. His breathing slowed and he was once again sleeping more peacefully. Grace stepped into his room and managed to straighten out one of his blankets and covered him with it, and then quietly slipped back out, shutting the door behind her.

The welcoming scent of coffee drew her back into the kitchen and she poured herself a mugful before filling the service carafe with the freshly brewed beverage. Rinsing out the coffee pot, she refilled the unit's water tank, put fresh grounds into the filter and set it up to brew another potful. After setting the carafe on the tray, she picked up the tray and made her way to the back of the house to offer fresh coffee to the first two Security Detail officers. They accepted gratefully and Grace made her way to the front door to the other two agents.

A car pulled up outside the house and immediately, the two agents sprang into action. One opened the house door, propelled Grace through it and told her to secure herself and the Reids. The other immediately alerted the two back door agents via his wire. Once Grace was back safely inside the house, the two agents cautiously approached the vehicle now parked in front of the safe house.

Guns drawn, the agents took up position outside the vehicle, a dark pickup truck. The lead agent barked the license plate number into his wire as the pickup's driver side door opened. A man's leg slid out the door, and his two hands immediately went skyward to indicate he was unarmed.

"Hey, Anderson!" the man greeted, "Is that any way to say hello?!"

The two agents stood down, breaking into laughter and catching their breath before Anderson finally threw an arm around the visitor in welcome. Together, they retrieved several packages from the front seat of the truck and walked up the porch steps into the house.

Anderson's partner opened the door and ushered them in, then spoke to the other two agents, updating them and advising them to carry on with their detail. They set the packages down on the kitchen table

Grace stood warily in the doorway between the kitchen and the hallway leading to the bedrooms, the hair on the back of her neck still prickling. Anderson saw her unease and quickly explained,

"S'okay, he's an old friend."

She heaved a sigh of relief and turned around when she heard footfalls behind her. Spencer, still in his pajamas, had heard the commotion and made his way into the kitchen. The question he had primed to ask died on his lips and his eyes grew wide.

"Derek Morgan!" His face registered surprise and then delight and a smile stretched across his face.

Derek put down the food container in his hand and drew the younger man into a tight embrace. He ruffled Reid's hair and held him at arm's length.

"Pretty Boy! Ah. It is so good to see you." He let go of Reid and waved at the table, "I brought breakfast. Sit down, man, we got a lot to talk about!"

+++++fin++++++