Sorry this is a short one but hope you enjoy anyway!
With Morgan behind the wheel, the trio including Reid and Hotch pulls up at the entrance of the hospital and jump out of the SUVs. Racing toward the doors, Reid glances down at his watch. 14 minutes. It's been 14 minutes since Riley hung up. What could have happened in those 14 minutes? The worst-case scenarios appear in Reid's mind as Morgan, Hotch, and he arrive at the elevator. Morgan presses the button indicating they wish to go up. Seconds seem like hours as the men wait anxiously for the doors to slide open and let them in.
A final ping opens the large, metal doors allowing the agents to dash in and press the small, round 3. The doors close and the elevator begins its ascent. The third ping echoes around the metal cabin and the doors slide open to reveal a man and a young boy waiting to get on. The men recognize the boy at once and realize what's going on.
Morgan is the first to whip his gun out of its' holster and aim it at the man. Sticking his foot in front of the door so it doesn't close, Morgan stares the man down, threatening any idea he has of escaping.
"Don't move," Morgan says as Reid and Hotch take a step forward with their own guns. Everything around them seems to come to a halt. Patients and nurses stop in their tracks and watch as the scene unfolds.
Wren's smile fades into a pained look as his father pierces his skin with the blade. He tries to fidget away but the man holds onto him tighter. Wren looks up into Reid's eyes, begging for help.
"Let him go!" Hotch commands from beside Morgan. The man starts to back away with his son in his grasp. The agents take a step in unison, following his every move.
He begins to panic. I didn't think this through, why didn't I see this coming? It was that girl! That girl slowed me down! I should have been in and out of there in a few minutes but she kept me there for so long! She was stalling me! Oh, I was so stupid! He looks up at the gunmen. Now what do I do! A quick glance to the left reveals an empty hallway- a way out. The man brings his focus back to the agents before him and waits for the right moment to make his get away. On the count of three. One...Two…
"Don't even think about it!" Morgan threatens, realizing the man's intentions. He takes a step closer to the man.
Three! He shoves his son toward the agents, turns, and sprints down the hallway. The man only makes it a few steps before his pursuer tackles him to the ground, the knife hits the hard, linoleum floor and bounces out of his grasp. Morgan kneels over the man, holsters his gun, and takes out a pair of handcuffs.
Reid steadies Wren as he stumbles toward him. Kneeling down and holstering his pistol, the agent looks at the boy.
Noticing the blood on his hands, Reid asks, "Wren, what's wrong? What's happened? Are you hurt?"
Looking around anxiously, Wren replies, "No, no! It's Riley! He, he hurt her!" Grabbing Reid's hand, the boy pulls him down the hall toward Riley's room. Reid stands and follows Wren without question.
Agent Hotchner looks over at Morgan, "Do you need any help over there?"
Morgan turns back as he handcuffs the man's arms together and stands him up roughly, "No, I got this. Go check on Riley!"
Hotch follows behind Reid and Wren as they enter the room. Riley lies on the linoleum floor like a discarded rag-doll. Reid kneels down on one side of her as Wren sits by her head. The little boy wipes a stream of blood away from the cut in her head.
Reid presses on her stomach as blood steadily seeps from the gash. "Come on, Riley! Don't do this, please look up." He lightly taps her cheeks. "Riley! Look at me!" Reid breathes a small sigh of relief as he reaches up to her neck and feels a pulse.
"Wake up, Riley!"
As the pair lean over Riley, Hotch goes to the door and calls, "We need a doctor in here!"
Almost immediately a man in a white lab coat rushes through the door with a male nurse behind him. The coat flutters behind him like a cape as he kneels down beside her.
"What happened here?" the doctor asks as he checks her vitals.
Wren, sitting on the floor with knees brought up to his chest, stares at her as he chokes out, "My...my Daddy hurt her. She said she would be alright!" He buries his head in the gap between his knees and chest, not wanting to watch if Riley was truly O.K or not. Hotchner works his way over to the boy, puts an arm around his shoulders, and whispers in his ear. Wren looks up, tears streaking his cheek, and nods seriously. Hotch smiles back and extends his hand to help the boy up. Placing his blood-stained hand in the older man's, Wren stands and follows him out of the room.
Reid, not noticing the exchange around him, continues to press on Riley's abdomen. "Why isn't she responding?" Reid murmurs to himself, frustrated.
"Sir, you need to step away so we can help her. Sir!" The doctor's voice sounds close to Reid, snapping him out of his trance. Slowly, he withdraws his crimson hands away from Riley and watches as the doctor and his assistant tend to her.
The doctor looks up at the nurse and speaks, "Her vitals are slightly elevated. She's losing a lot of blood though...We need to get her stitched up or she will die of blood loss."
The two men pick the girl up with ease and carry her to the hallway. They carefully place her on a gurney and wheel her down the corridor. The squeak of the gurney wheels echoes through the hospital room. Reid hears the sound even after it has stopped. His mind is in a haze. He can't think straight. Nothing is making sense to him anymore. Why would the unsub hurt Riley? Maybe she got in the way of his kidnaping Wren? It would make sense; Riley wouldn't let anything happen to Wren...But why would she let this happen to her? Reid shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair. How could I let this happen?
As always reviews are super appreciated! Thanks for reading!