That's What Family's For

CM Reid/OC (MelissaMartinReid)

#6 in the Spencer and Melissa series

K+

Anna carefully placed the grocery bag containing eggs and bread on the front passenger seat then shut the door and walked around to the back of the family's Ford Escape where her mother was busy loading the other groceries into the open rear hatch.

"Sure appreciate the pregnant mother parking spot," Melissa muttered aloud as she hefted another bag into the car. She'd managed to get the best parking spot in the lot, right across from the grocery store's front door. Sighing, she told Anna,

"I'm almost done, Honey. Why don't you show me what a big girl you are now, and get into your booster seat?"

Anna complied, eager to show Melissa how responsible she could be. As she climbed into her seat, a dark blue SUV pulled in behind their Escape. Momentarily distracted as she fumbled with the booster seat's belt, Anna didn't see the SUV driver get out of the vehicle and approach Melissa from behind, but she did hear her mother's interrupted question.

"What the hell? Why is this—oh!"

Melissa was struck on the head and Anna, hearing her mother's sudden outcry of pain, turned in her seat and saw Melissa being dumped into the backseat of the SUV.

"Mommy!" she screamed as the SUV's door slammed shut. Briefly paralysed by fear, she struggled with undoing the booster seat belt then scrambled out of the car screaming, "Mommy, Mommy!" as the SUV drove off.

Anna stood frozen at the back of the Escape and stared as the SUV carrying her mother sped off out of the parking lot and onto the roadway. This gave way to anguish and confusion and finally anger and she ran into the grocery store, back to the same cashier who just moments ago had rung through their order.

"My mommy!" Anna cried as she caught the cashier's attention.

"Anna! Dear, what's wrong?" She excused herself from her customer, but both she and the female shopper knelt down to Anna's level. The customer searched through her purse for tissues; the cashier hugged Anna and asked her again,

"Sweetie, just breathe, okay? What happened? Where's your momma?"

Anna pointed out to the parking lot and the female shopper asked, "Is she hurt, dear?"

Between gulps of air while trying to stop crying, Anna managed to tell them, "Somebody hit Mommy and took her!"

The cashier called an alert code on her store phone and immediately half a dozen staff members converged at her till. The store manager led a pair of employees out to the parking lot as he called police on his cell phone. The Loss Prevention Security Officer spoke briefly with Kathleen-the cashier who had called the alert. She was busy comforting Anna as best she could while she told the LP officer,

"Her mother's name is Melissa. Don't know the last name but she comes in with Anna here," she paused to stroke Anna's hair, "Every week to do their grocery shopping. And Ryan? Melissa is pregnant, I think she's about six months along."

"What's your last name, Sweetheart?" Ryan asked Anna. She looked at him warily, not willing to trust this man she didn't know. Her tears flowed again and she buried her face in Kathleen's uniformed chest.

"It's okay, Anna. Ryan just wants to help find your momma."

Ryan held up a note he'd hastily scribbled and Kathleen read from it.

"Does your Momma drive a red car, Anna?"

Anna nodded through her tears, furrowed her brow as she remembered, "Mommy called it a Scape."

Ryan nodded, whispering "Red Escape."

Kathleen hugged Anna again. "Your momma's name, honey? Melissa?"

Anna nodded, "Melissa Martin Reid."

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The team members were all sitting around the bullpen, clustered by Spencer Reid who was showing off another round of photos of his new wife and stepdaughter. David Rossi and Tara Lewis were both sharing the embarrassing videos they'd taken at the reveal party a few weeks earlier.

"Again?" Reid complained good-naturedly. "You're never gonna let me live that down, are you?"

"It gets worse, Kid. Garcia is making a Power Point presentation," Rossi informed him.

"Don't worry, Morgan is the one wearing baby food in the photos. You're just wearing That Hat," Lewis teased.

Reid laughed as Garcia interrupted them, beckoning them to the round table room.

As they took their seats, she clicked on the smart-board and two images appeared. Hotchner entered the room, a file in one hand and his cell phone to his ear.

"Okay, thanks," he said as he shut off and pocketed his smart phone. "Go ahead, Garcia," he invited.

"This is gonna be a hard one," she warned, shooting an empathetic look Reid's way. Rossi noticed it but held his tongue as Garcia continued, "Sunday morning, 28 year old brunette Kendra Samuels," she indicated the first photo, "is—was—the choir leader at St Andrew's Church here in DC. When the pastor arrived for morning service preparations at 8 am, he found her vehicle in the parking lot but no sign of her, anywhere in the church. Kendra Samuels was seven months pregnant. Metro DC Police found her body Monday night, dumped behind a strip mall three blocks away. And, how can I put this? She wasn't pregnant anymore."

Reid gagged as he went through the crime scene photos and had stopped at one of them.

"Oh, My God," Lewis said as she viewed the same photo to which Reid had just reacted. Rossi winced and Garcia fought back tears as she soldiered on.

"Tuesday afternoon, 31 year old blonde Rachel Stone," Garcia indicated the second photo on the smart-board, "disappeared after her six month checkup at her doctor's office. Her car, with the driver's door still open, was noticed an hour after appointment time. She hasn't been found yet. One way or the other." She blinked several times in succession to keep her composure.

"Police have no witnesses to either abduction; they've pulled surveillance footage from both sites. The church doesn't have any cameras. The pastor is reluctant to spy on his parishioners but there is a convenience store down the block from the church and Metro PD has gone to gather any they may have."

Reid swallowed and turned over the photo of Kendra's body. "Do they know," he paused to chew his bottom lip and drive away a terrible thought, "How did she die? And what happened to—what happened to the," he couldn't say it aloud.

"Doesn't say," Garcia looked at her notes. "The autopsy is happening this morning."

Hotch spoke up, "We should talk to the Medical Examiner. Dave, will you take care of that later?" Hotchner had no intention of sending Reid, it was plainly obvious that the youngest member was deeply disturbed by this case and Hotchner was compassionate enough to see that. "Reid, go to the police department, talk to Will—he called us into the case—go through their evidence. Lewis, talk to the families. Is there any kind of connection between the two victims, Garcia? Besides that they're both pregnant."

She shook her head, "None initially, Sir. But I will dig deep and see if I can find anything. Also going to go through the surveillance footage."

He nodded at her and she put down the smart board remote and moved around the table towards the door, which suddenly burst open.

Agent Jennifer Jareau hurried in and motioned to Hotchner, who stepped away from the others to listen to her.

"There's been another abduction, Hotch," she whispered.

His face tightened; he'd wondered very briefly why Jareau had taken him aside to tell him this and almost instantly understood why.

Deliberately facing away from the other team members, he mouthed 'Melissa?' and JJ nodded affirmatively.

"Damn it!" he swore.

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