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Chapter 9
'Everyone is responsible and no one is to blame' Will Schutz
When they arrived at the hospital Hotch led the others to the desk asking after Sophie and Livie. The receptionist told them that Livie was being x-rayed for cracked ribs and that Sophie was being seen to by a doctor. Slowly they wondered over to the waiting room where after about fifteen minutes Reid wondered out looking slightly dazed. At the sight of him they all leapt up.
"How are they" Morgan demanded looking worried, Reid shrugged "Sophie is with JJ, she caused a bit of a problem when we arrived because she didn't want to leave Livie but she persuaded her to go to JJ after a while, then she didn't want a male doctor examining her and shrieked bloody murder when one tried to come close so they found a female doctor for her. She seems ok with me being in the room but otherwise doesn't like any other men in the room which isn't surprising considering what she went through".
Everyone nodded before Emily asked "what about Livie". Reid ducked his head and shuffled his feet "they say she was lucky, she hit her head when she fell and blacked out so they want to keep her to monitor for a concussion. The bullet cracked a rib which they are sorting out now. She seems ok in herself though, grumbling at the doctors and ordering me to get her out of there." Everyone smirked "she was incredibly lucky" Morgan said.
"No not really" Reid said "she was wearing a Police issue II-A class vest made of the standard fibre Kevlar which is woven into a dense fabric. It has multiple layers to strengthen it. The distance between her and our unsub relative to the strength of the vest suggests that when she was hit the bullet each layer worked to slow the bullet down until it finally stops which is why the bullet deforms on impact, spreading out at the tip. Commonly this process is called mushrooming now. The energy of the bullet is also dispersed across the whole vest to reduce impact and to prevent injury"
"Yeah well I bet it still hurt" Emily muttered looking down the hall. "Emily go help JJ with Sophie" Hotch said "see if you can get anything out of her, we will wait to see how Livie is and the unsub". Emily nodded and headed down the hall to the room that Reid directed her too. She knocked quietly before she entered and poked her head round the door. JJ was sitting on the edge of a bed with Sophie on her lap watching the little girl as she hugged Shadow tightly.
Emily felt saddened as she looked at the little girl now orphaned; she didn't have a family to offer her comfort in this time when she needed it most. She had no one; her life had been destroyed by those unsubs and it would never be easy for her from now on.
"Hi Sophie" she said gently and the little girl's head snapped up eying her fearfully. "Hey" she said again "do you remember me honey, I'm Emily, I work with Livie, I was round your house." Sophie eyed her indecisively before she nodded bringing Shadow up to her face to hide behind.
Emily smiled comfortingly at her "can I come in" she asked and Sophie paused warily "hey Sophie" JJ said "I work with Emily and she is really nice and I bet if you wanted she would get you something to eat or drink, would you like that". Obviously torn between fear and hunger Sophie nodded and Emily smiled and slipped back out of the room. She headed over to the nearest vending machine and bought a carton of apple juice and some candy and crisps.
She slowly slipped back into the room and offered the food and drink to Sophie who took them eagerly and ate hurriedly. "Do you like Cheetos Sophie" she asked and the little girl nodded "wow do you know what, they are JJ's favourites" Emily said and Sophie looked up at JJ who nodded "yeah she eats them all the time" Emily said "so make sure she doesn't steal any". A small smile slipped onto Sophie's face before she mumbled "Cheetos are my favourite too". "Really" JJ said "wow I have never found anyone else who likes Cheetos as much as me Sophie". Sophie smiled again before she looked at them both "Where's Livie" she asked.
"Don't worry she'll be back soon" JJ promised "yeah she was just being checked out by the doctors" Emily said and Sophie nodded as she slipped another Cheeto into her mouth. JJ and Emily waited until she had eaten all the food they had bought her before JJ gently asked "Sophie can you be a really brave girl and answer some questions" she asked and Sophie instantly looked worried "don't worry it won't take long" Emily promised and eventually the little girl nodded as she ducked her head.
"Do you remember what happened when they came and took you" Emily asked gently. Sophie was silent at first before she spoke so quietly they both had to lean in to hear her response "I got woke up by mommy screaming, it was loud and then it was quiet and I was frightened I didn't know what to do so I hid in my bed. Then he came in and grabbed me, I tried to run but he held me tight, it hurt. Then he put something over my mouth and nose, it smelt funny and it made me feel icky, then I fell asleep"
She paused and her fingers stroked at Shadow's neck. "What happened when you woke up" JJ asked and she went quiet again before responding "I was in this little room, it was cold and dark and I was scared cus there was a bracelet round my ankle and it was attached to the wall and it was heavy"
She chewed her lip "then the scary men came in, the baddest one took pictures of me and told me mommy was gone and I wouldn't see her again." "Did he hurt you" Emily asked and to their relief Sophie shook her head "he touched me but didn't hurt me bad."
She told them of how the other bad man was the one who brought her food before he stopped coming and she was hungry. Then the baddest man came and he was angry and he took her out, he tied her hands behind her back and put her in a van and drove her to the shed.
When she was done she let out a whimper "I want Livie" she whimpered and JJ looked at Emily "come on then" she said gently "let's go see if we can find her." She gently lifted Sophie into her arms and they headed down the hall where they found Rossi waiting in the waiting room. "Hey" he said keeping his distance when he saw Sophie shy away at the sight of him "they are in with her now talking to her" JJ nodded "Sophie you can see Livie in a minute but we have to stay here and wait yes" Sophie nodded eyeing Rossi nervously. "Don't worry" Emily said "this is David he works for the police like us, he is nice".
Rossi smiled at Sophie "hi" he said "I hear you like ponies." Sophie nodded still uncertain and he smiled "well I saw these and I thought you might like to play with them". He held out two ponies with fuzzy manes and tails, one was reddish in colour and the other was brown with a black mane and tail. Emily looked at him questioningly and he shrugged "went to get coffee and saw them in the gift shop" he said as Sophie edged over and took the ponies "thank you" she mumbled and he smiled "no problem" he said.
"What are you going to call them" Emily asked and Sophie thought before she held up the brown one "Bramble" she proclaimed "I had a Bramble but she broke" JJ smiled "that is a lovely name" she praised "what about that one". Sophie considered the other toy "I don't know" she mumbled "how about Rusty" Emily suggested and a little grin slipped across Sophie's face "yeah" she said "cus he is rusty coloured".
Slowly she clambered up onto the chair next to JJ and began to play gently with the toys whilst she waited to go see her saviour.
XO
Maybe 20 minutes after Emily disappeared a doctor came out and told them they could see Livie now. They all rose but Rossi volunteered to stay there "just in case Emily or JJ come back" he said and headed off to get coffee.
Slowly the others made their way down the hall to the room they had been directed too. Outside Reid hesitated suddenly unsure; he had come in with her and had seen her before she had been treated, all bloody and bruised and yelping in pain every time she moved yet still protesting that she was fine and didn't want to stay in overnight and demanding that he get her released as she was being taken off to be sorted out. He had seen her at her most vulnerable. So why was he anxious now?
He felt Hotch give him a gentle push as he knocked on the door and pushed it open. Slowly Reid followed the others inside and his gaze was instantly drawn to the girl in the bed.
Livie was sitting up in the bed smiling at Morgan and Hotch as they moved over. Then her eyes flicked up to Reid and the smile grew "hey Spence" she murmured and he swallowed nervously "hi" he managed to choke out staring into her greenie eyes until Morgan cleared his throat pointedly and she looked up at him "what are we invisible" he teased and she smiled up at him.
"How are you feeling" Hotch asked gently and she shifted up the pillows wincing as she did so "alright" she said "apparently the bullet cracked two ribs and I have a concussion from being beaten up and then hitting my head when I fell, but I am fine, I don't need to stay in." She looked at Hotch "can you tell them that and get me out" she asked and Hotch shook his head "Livie you need to stay in overnight" he said "you got beaten up pretty bad." Livie scowled at him but Reid could see that he was right; she had a blackened eye, bruises on her cheek and a split lip.
Livie sighed defeated and brought one hand up to brush hair from her eyes and they saw that her wrist was strapped up, "what happened there" Morgan asked and she shrugged "fight with the unsub" she said "he was trying to get me to drop my gun before I fired those two shots into the air". She swallowed and looked at them "what happened to him" she asked looking slightly worried "did you kill him." "I spoke to the surgeons" Hotch said "we shot him in the chest and shoulder and the bullets did quite a bit of internal damaged but he will survive, as soon as he is able he will be transported to a secure lockdown facility to await trial and with everything that we have on him and assaulting a federal officer I think we can safely say he won't be getting out anytime soon"
Livie smiled "I am only an intern, not a federal officer" she pointed out "ah we don't need to stress that point" Morgan said with a wink making Livie grin before she turned serious again. "Sophie" she asked, "she is with JJ and Emily" Hotch said before he looked at Reid who stepped forward "she is frightened of men and won't let them close but once she was examined the doctors said she was relatively unharmed physically, just a bit malnourished" he said filling her in and Livie nodded "can I see her" she asked "soon" Hotch said and sat down in one of the chairs "first you need to tell us everything that happened"
Livie nodded and quickly told them what had happened; how she had noticed the little shed and remembered how Annabelle Hunt had been killed in one just like it. Not wanting to pull Rossi and JJ from where they were supposed to be she had run over to quickly check it out and had found Sophie tied up inside ad how as she had been trying to take her to safety the unsub had attacked her. She told them what had happened in their fight but was vague on the details and the rest of the team could tell that she had been beaten a lot worse than she was letting on.
"It was brave what you did" Hotch said when she fell silent at the end of her tale "but it was also very reckless, you shouldn't have gone off on your own like that" Livie nodded "I know" she said softly. "But because you did you saved Sophie's life" Hotch said before he looked at Reid and Morgan "and I can't dig into you because it isn't like anyone else has never disobeyed the rules and gone off on their own or done something stupid." Both his agents shifted their feet looking slightly embarrassed.
Livie smiled at them all before Hotch looked at Reid and jerked his head towards the door. Knowing what he meant Reid slipped out. "What happens now" Livie asked "well as soon as you are out of here we will head home" Hotch said "the case is closed, we are no longer needed here" Livie nodded and they could tell that there was something else on her mind but then they heard Reid's voice from outside the door "ok you ready" he asked "guess who's in here".
He rounded the corner with Emily right beside him and in her arms looking around uncertainly at all the men was Sophie. She spotted Livie in the bed and a shy smile slipped onto her face. "There she is" Emily said "told you she was ok" Sophie stared at Livie who smiled back at the little girl "hey Soph" she said gently and Emily carried the little girl over to the bed "ok be really gentle" she warned as JJ and Rossi slipped into the room "Livie has a poorly chest". Sophie nodded and Emily set her on the bed. Instantly she crawled up and flung her arms around Livie who visibly winced but then wrapped her arms around the little girl hugging her tightly as she snuggled up against her.
"Hey little one you ok" Livie asked and Sophie nodded "have you been with Emily and JJ" she questioned and again Sophie nodded "I got Cheetos" she said and Livie smiled at her. Hotch felt a small smile slip onto his face as he watched the young intern with the little girl. He could see how comfortable Sophie was with Livie and how she seemed to feel safe with her. He could see she was still anxious about all the men in the room and she eyed them nervously but to his amusement she seemed to be ok with Reid who was sitting next to Livie watching how she interacted with the little girl. She must have seen how comfortable Livie was with him and had decided that if Livie trusted him he must be safe.
Livie introduced her to all of them and she eyed them uncertainly but got more comfortable with them as time went by. Eventually she curled up next to Livie and utterly exhausted she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
They all quietened down, not wanting to wake her up. That was when Livie looked up at them "what will happen to her now" she asked and Hotch sighed heavily, he hadn't been looking forward to this conversation with her. "She will be taken care of" he said "and a new family will be found for her and she will be adopted." Livie stared at him looking worried "but until that family is found" she said "will she be in foster care." Hotch nodded "someone will be by to pick her up in the morning" he said "the doctors have already cleared her to leave after breakfast".
Livie looked at the sleeping child and she blinked furiously to fight back tears. Then she looked up at Hotch "no" she said "she can't go into foster care after everything that has happened to her, she is already traumatised enough, I know someone who went through the foster system, she hated it and was hurt badly, Sophie can't go into the system." "Livie" Hotch said gently "she has too, so she can be adopted, she has to be fostered until a family is found" "no" Livie whispered looking back down at the child sleeping soundly beside her.
Something crossed over her face before she looked up at Hotch "let me take her" she said and everyone blinked in surprise. "They wont let you adopt her" Hotch said "you are single and working a job that involves travelling a lot." "I know" Livie said "I don't mean adopt her I mean let her stay with me until a family is found for her, if that means ending my time with you guys early then fine but I just don't want to watch her get bounced around, having her life disrupted even more"
Hotch looked at her and saw the desperation in her pleading eyes. He looked at the little girl and realised he didn't want her to have to be fostered either, it was unsettling for any child and Sophie was already unsettled.
"I'll talk to social services" he said "but don't get your hopes up ok" Livie nodded relaxing slightly. "Get some sleep" Morgan told her "it has been a very long day" Livie nodded "you guys get some sleep too" she said "go back to the hotel, I'll be fine here". Hotch looked at his exhausted team "ok" he said "lets go" as everyone grabbed their things and said goodbye he looked at Livie "we'll be back in the morning" he said and she nodded to him shifting down into a more comfortable position.
As he turned to leave Hotch saw that Reid hadn't moved and was still seated next to the bed. The young genius looked at his boss and Hotch nodded to him before he slipped out heading out with the rest of the team.
In the elevator JJ asked gently "do you think social services will let her keep Sophie." "If we pull some strings maybe" he responded and JJ ducked her head "if she does get to keep her will her time with us end" "most likely yes" Hotch said not looking at her. The rest of the journey back to their hotel was in silence.
XO
Reid looked at Livie who was curled up with Sophie, eyes closed. She looked very peaceful he noted, the most peaceful he had ever seen her. That was when her eyes slowly opened and she looked at him "you didn't have to stay you know" she said and he smiled awkwardly "well you know" he said "someone has to translate doctor's medical jargon", she smirked "having spent a lot of time in hospital, I think I could do most of it for myself" she said and he nodded with a small smile.
"Hey Spence" she said softly "thanks" "for what" he asked "for everything" she responded and he nodded "you should get some sleep" he said "it is during sleep that growth hormones are most active so you will heal better" she rolled her eyes "yeah best bed time story every" she teased closing her eyes.
There was a pause before she spoke again "Spence" she called softly and he looked up "I know you are going over and over what happened tonight in your mind and you had better not blame yourself" she told him and he shifted awkwardly not liking how well she could profile him. He stared at her not knowing what to say. She stared back "it wasn't your fault" she said "it was all me ok". Slowly he nodded and she smiled "now get some sleep genius" she mumbled before she closed her eyes again "night Spence" she mumbled and a few seconds later she fell silent.
Reid watched her sleep for a few minutes, she looked very peaceful there with her chest rising smoothly and Sophie cuddled up next to her. He smiled weakly before he settled himself down into a more comfortable position in the chair and closed his eyes before he slowly joined them in the serenity of their dreams.
XO
When Reid began to wake up the next morning he could hear hushed whispers and giggles. Blearily he opened his eyes to see Livie and Sophie awake with their heads bent together. On the table beside them were empty breakfast plates and coffee cups.
As he stirred Livie looked up and smiled at him "hey Spence" she said "hey" he said and groaned as he stretched his aching back. "Saved you some breakfast and some coffee" Livie said holding them out to him and he smiled as he took them "thanks" he said "what time is it" he asked "almost nine" she responded "Hotch called … the team are on their way." He nodded as he sipped the coffee watching her as she smiled at him; he ducked his head before looking up at her. She was watching him trying to profile how he was feeling, then slowly she smiled and without hesitation he smiled back and she visibly relaxed.
Reid looked back down at Sophie who was watching him uncertainly. "Hey Sophie" he said gently "how you feeling kiddo", she smiled cautiously at him "ok" she mumbled and he saw that she was clutching two toy horses that she and Livie had been playing with "who are they" he asked and a small smile slipped across her face "Bramble and Rusty" she said "Dave got them for me" "Rossi got them" Reid said raising his eyebrows at Livie who shrugged. Reid looked back at Sophie and wanted to see her truly smile.
"Hey Sophie do you want to see a magic trick" he asked. Sophie hesitated obviously very torn between her fear of strangers and her desire to see magic, but her curiosity won over and she nodded slipping off the bed as he knelt down in front of her. Looking up at Livie Reid asked "can I borrow your ring". Livie nodded and slipped the silver band off of her middle finger and handed it to him watching interested.
"Ok" he said placing the ring on the flat of his palm "you see it yes". Sophie nodded watching him keenly. "Ok" he said closing his hand around it giving it a quick twist "blow on it" he told her and gently Sophie blew on his closed fist. Her eyes widened in amazement as he opened his hand to show her that it was empty "oh" he said feigning surprise "where did that go, you made Livie's ring disappear".
Sophie stared gobsmacked before she turned to stare at Livie who teased "did you lose my ring". "Oh wait what is that" Reid asked and Sophie turned back to face him as he gently reached behind her ear and produced the little ring "what is that doing back there" he asked as Sophie's jaw dropped before she let out a little laugh that made both Livie and Reid smile at the happy sound. Then Sophie smiled the most genuine and happy smile they had seen from her; she took the ring examining it amazed before she handed it back to Reid. "Again" she demanded and grinning Reid complied.
When the rest of the team arrived he was halfway through doing the little trick for the sixth time and it still amazed Sophie who could not for the life of her figure out how he did it. "Well it appears Henry isn't the only child who Reid can enthral with a simple magic trick" JJ said and everyone smirked.
Livie looked up and spotted them then and she grinned "hey" she said "hey kid how you feeling" Morgan asked "yeah not bad" she said as Sophie scurried back over to the bed where she felt safer. "We spoke to your doctors" Hotch said "and he is happy for you and Sophie to be released after he has given you another examination" Livie smiled "awesome" she said "did you bring any coffee, hospital stuff tastes like monkey piss". Everyone sniggered "I am sure we can stop and get some on the way to the airport" Emily said "we packed your go bag so as soon as you are discharged we are heading off".
Livie nodded before she looked down at the little girl sitting next to her frowning at Reid, still trying to figure out how he made the ring disappear and reappear. "What about Sophie" she asked. "She went through a great trauma" Hotch said "we explained that to social services and they grudgingly agreed to let her come back to Quantico with us and for social services there to handle her case. They will do some checks and keep an eye on her until they find an adoptive family for her" he looked at Livie. "And given how attached she is to you they are willing to let her stay with you until a family is found".
Livie smiled a huge smile "really" she breathed "awesome." Hotch nodded "well social services will have to check out your apartment first but it shouldn't be a problem, we will help you get everything ready." "Thanks guys" Livie said gratefully and everyone nodded "we went back to Sophie's house" Morgan said "we bought as much as her stuff as we could manage including her toys, books and DVDs." He crouched down next to a bag he had been carrying and opened it pulling out some clothes and some toys for the little girl who instantly slipped of the bed and cautiously came closer to see her things.
Once both Livie and Sophie had been discharged and cleared to travel they explained to the little girl that she was coming with them back to where they lived and she would stay with Livie for a little while until they found somewhere nice for her to live. She seemed ok with that and especially happy to stay with Livie.
Once they had changed into their own clothes the team took Livie and Sophie down to the SUVs and drove to the airport. Having never been on an aeroplane before Sophie was a bit uncertain about getting in and take off but once they were in the air she sat in the large seat nose pressed against the window staring out the window in astonishment at the tiny houses.
Once she had gotten over that they set up a laptop so that she could watch a movie and everyone smirked as they saw Reid curiously watching Beauty and the Beast with her and it soon became hard to tell who was more into the movie.
Hotch looked at Livie who was watching Sophie deep in thought. "What's on your mind" he asked and she looked at him blankly before registering what he had said "just trying to figure out what I am going to do now" she said "what do you mean" he asked and she looked at him "well I can't continue to work for the BAU with Sophie can I? I can't travel". He gave her a look "yes you can" he said and she looked at him confused.
"I spoke to Jessica my sister-in-law" he said "and JJ spoke to Will, her husband and Garcia. They are all willing to help you look after Sophie. When I am away Jessica looks after Jack for me and she would love to look after Sophie as well and when Jessica has to work at weekends, Will often keeps both Henry and Jack as he has weekends off and he is willing to have Sophie too. Obviously she won't go to school for a few weeks so Garcia is happy to have her stay in her office whilst we are working cases and she can stay in the bullpen with you whilst we are home. Between the three of them they can look after her Livie, I think Garcia was even saying something about moving into your apartment whilst you are away if that would make things easier".
Livie stared at him in shock "so I don't have to stop working with you" she asked and he shook his head "you are to finish the rest of your six months with us" he told her and she blinked again "I thought I got three months" she checked and a small smile slipped onto his face "well you did good on this case, we feel that you have potential and we want to help you become the best that you can be". Again Livie stared in shock "what about Strauss" she asked "does she know about this and about Sophie cus I am pretty sure she will skin me alive for running off on my own"
Morgan chuckled and Livie looked over to find them all listening to this conversation "leave Strauss to us" he said "you are good kid, very good; she would be silly not to see that and kick you out". Livie smiled "thank you" she whispered "You have no idea how much that means to me". They all nodded "welcome to the real BAU team kid" Morgan said giving her a friendly thump on the back making her laugh at the same time Garcia appeared on the laptop next to them. "Um heads up Livie as protocol dictates we um informed your family of your injury and I think your mom was a bit exasperated". Livie laughed again "yeah I would expect her to be" she said at the exact same time her phone rang and she laughed as she saw who was calling and answered it as she slipped out of her seat.
"Hi mom" she said before she winced as she obviously received an earful "yeah… no I didn't get shot… well I did but I was wearing a vest, I'm fine mom… yeah I know I'm a magnet for danger… yep … on the way back to Quantico now… uh huh… um yeah there is something I have to tell you…" she headed to the back of the plane and Emily sniggered "I think her mom is going to get a bit of a shock when she finds out not only has her daughter been shot but she is also bringing a kid back with her".
Everyone grinned before they looked back over their shoulders to see Reid was sitting next to Sophie listening as she told him the story of Beauty and the Beast. "Does he know about Livie's internship getting extended" Emily asked and Hotch shook his head "it isn't even official yet, JJ has put in the paperwork but Strauss still needs to sign off on it which might be a slight bump in the road" "nah we can handle that" Rossi said and everyone smiled.
Reid looked over his shoulder as he heard Livie laugh and say "yeah I swear I have thought this through… I just didn't want to see her get her life uprooted anymore… yeah it isn't permanent… I guess she reminded me of myself after I got hurt… yeah… no I am not alone I have got my team… yeah I am happy… ok I'll call back tonight when I get in, tell Kaylee I will talk to her then… ok, love you mom… always".
Smiling she hung up the phone and looked at Reid "enjoying the movie" she teased "yes actually the symbols inside of it are intriguing" he said and she groaned "ok got a challenge for you" she said "watch the movie, don't think about symbols, errors in the script or hidden meaning" she gently turned his head back to face the little screen "don't think, just watch, lose yourself in the innocence, because that is what Disney is about"
"Um ok" he said uncertainly and grinning Livie leaned over the back of the chairs to watch the rest of the film. Hotch watched the three of them thinking. If he didn't know any better he would say that they were some sort of cute dysfunctional family. After his magic tricks Sophie seemed to have bonded with Reid and seemed quite happy to have him sitting next to her watching the movie with her.
He knew that Livie was not alone in her attempt to protect Sophie from anymore harm. They would all help her find Sophie the family she deserved in any way they could. But it did seem she had found the most help in the most unlikely of people; in their cute, dorky, socially awkward genius, Spencer Reid.
'You can design and create, and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it takes people to make the dream a reality' Walt Disney
Hope you enjoyed that chapter. Please review and I promise that I will try to get the next chapter up sooner.
Thanks. Mysticgirl
