A/N warning to PB – fluff alert!!!!
THE
VILLAGE
Chapter11
The
Buggy
'The truth is out there.' – Fox Mulder
Dave was tiring fast. The blood from his head wound was getting in his eyes and Hotch seemed to be getting heavier. Although he hadn't eaten for a week, and was showing signs of malnutrition, Dave was weakened by the crack on the head and Reid's attack and was finding it hard to carry Hotch any further. His throat hurt and he felt sure that the bruises were coming out now.
'I have to stop.' he said, sinking to the ground. Morgan turned back and took Aaron in his arms.
'It's not too far now, Dave. Can you do it if I carry Hotch?'
Reid reached out his hand, and Dave took it. With their arms around each other, they slowly moved on to where the buggy had been left.
Reid was puzzled. He couldn't understand why the dogs hadn't caught up with them yet. The sounds seemed to be getting fainter. Were they giving up and letting them get away?
Morgan had gone on ahead, and for some minutes he was out of sight. Then he returned without Aaron.
'The buggy's gone.'
'I suppose the woman took it.' Dave said. We need to get Reid and Hotch to a hospital, and fast.'
'Reid, Hotch and Rossi, i think.' Morgan said. 'You three remain here. I'll walk until I can get cell service and call for help.'
He helped Reid and Rossi to the rock formation where he had left Hotch lying in the shade.
'Stay here, I won't be long.'
Dave and Spencer watched Morgan until he was out of sight. Dave checked Hotch. He was still alive but deeply unconscious. Dave was concerned for him. Reid was concerned for Dave.
'How's the neck?' Reid asked.
Dave turned to him.
'It's fine, don't worry. I can hardly blame you for what you did.'
'The villagers were raping Hotch. He was going to die. I thought you....'
'I really am ok.' he said, touching his neck. 'It probably looks worse than it is.'
Reid sat down with his hands covering his face.
'Did you see the grave on the green in the village?' Reid asked. Dave nodded. 'They told me it was Hotch's grave. They told me he was dead, and all the time they were starving and raping him, and I did nothing. I let it go on. If he dies, if..... It will be because of me.
Dave sat beside him, close but not touching. 'Were you drugged?'
'I think so, but I don't know how. Even when I refused food I still felt as if they were drugging me.'
'Then you can hardly blame yourself, can you.'
'They gave Hotch a picture of me at the funeral. He must have been devastated. And now, because of my stupidity, he could die.'
'He's alive, Reid. And whatever happens, I know he wouldn't want you to beat yourself up over it.'
'I'm in love with him, you know.'
'I know.'
Reid shot him a surprised look but continued, 'I was going to tell him on this holiday. I doubt if he would have responded as I would have wanted, but I needed to tell him.'
'Tell him now.'
Reid looked at Dave in astonishment.
'Go ahead.' Dave said. 'I'll go for a walk.'
Reid smiled at Dave – his first smile for a week.'
-0-0-0-
Reid crawled to Hotch's side, and took his hand in his.
'Hey, Hotch. It's Spencer.'
Hotch sighed softly, and his eyes fluttered open.'
'Hey.' Reid said.
'Hey.' Hotch whispered back. He tried to smile but he coughed. Reid lifted him so that he was sitting with his back to Reid, his head resting on his chest. Reid wrapped his arms around Hotch, and rocked slightly.
Hotch closed his eyes and Reid felt him relax against him.
'I need to tell you something, Hotch.'
Hotch held Reid's hands tightly. His own fingers were smashed, but he found the streengeth to curl them around Reid's.
'I'm in love with you, Hotch.'
There was a moment of silence. Reid thought his heart would burst out of his chest. Then Hotch spoke.
'I knew already, Spence. But I'm sorry; I just can't love you in that way.' He leaned to the side so that he could look into Reid's wide hazel eyes. Reid felt as if he was swimming in Aaron's dark ones.
'You will always be important to me, and I see you as a very close friend, and as a friend, I couldn't love you more.' There were tears in Reid's eyes as he stared down at the man he loved more than life itself. He just wanted to embrace Hotch and never let him go, but he couldn't.
'You don't hate me?'
'How could I hate you, Spence? I would die for you. But I can't give you the love you want, need even. I am so sorry. Could you accept my friendship?'
Now Reid did embrace Hotch. He wrapped his arms around him and held him close.
'Of course. Any aspect of your love for me I can accept.' he kissed Hotch lightly on the temple. 'Thank you for not hating me. Hotch. Hotch?'
Aaron slumped against Reid. The effort of conversation had been too much for him in his condition, and he had fainted. Reid's tears flowed freely as he held onto the man he loved.
-0-0-0-
Dave walked towards a downward slope. He wanted to be out of earshot. He stood at the top of the slope and looked out over the desert. The last few hours had rushed by so quickly he had not had the chance to evaluate what had happened. The village in the desert needed to be investigated. The ones in charge needed to be brought to justice for kidnapping and attempted murder, possibly actual murder too. He took out his phone and checked the photographs of the forest and the village that he had taken. There was something strange about the pictures; they were blurred and the colours weren't right. Still, he thought Garcia could do her stuff and enhance them.
He put away his phone and looked down the hill. That was when he saw it. He started to run down the hill, and slipped over in the dry sand. He slid the rest of the way on his back.
The buggy was upside down in a thicket of dead and dried up bushes. He got down on his knees and looked underneath it. The first thing he saw was the bloody stain in the sand, but there was no one in the buggy.
He thought it likely that the woman had taken it, crashed it, and run. If she was in the desert, he was not optimistic that they would find her. As soon as cell service was active again, he would alert the LVPD. It looked by the amount of blood that she was hurt quite badly. She needed help.
-0-0-0-
Morgan walked through the dry air with his cell phone held out in front of him, waiting for service. He felt as if he had been walking for miles, when it finally beeped to tell him he was in a service area. He straight away called Garcia.
'Hey Baby Girl!'
'Morgan where have you been? We've all been worried sick here!'
'It's a long story, Honey Babe. I'll tell you over drinks. We found Hotch and Reid, but they need an ambulance. Can you get us a helicopter to pick me up and I'll take it to the others.'
'I'll do that for you, Sweetheart. Are you ok?'
'Perfect!' he said, rubbing his shoulder. 'It's everyone else!'
'The air ambulance is on its way. Stay where you are and it will be there in a few minutes.'
'Thank you Sweet. I'll be home soon.'
Garcia blew him a kiss and cut the connection. Morgan sat down on a rock and thought over what had just happened.
Like Rossi, he hadn't had time to really think about what had happened. The village from what he saw was old, and had been there for a long time. They were not Amish, they were too violent and ready to carry guns, but they could be a religion of some kind, a break away sect perhaps. He had noticed that there were no children. If they had been cut off for a long time, they were probably so in bred that they couldn't conceive now. He wondered if that was why they abducted Reid and Hotch. Then why treat them so badly?
He needed to find out more from Reid. It would be a while he thought before Hotch could talk about anything.
He heard the whump whump of the helicopter blades, and he stood on the rock and waved his arms painfully in the air.
-0-0-0-
As the air ambulance touched down near where the others were waiting, Morgan was ready to jump out and help them into their rescue helicopter.
Dave had seen the approaching air craft from where he was looking over the wreck of the buggy, and with great difficulty, ran back up the sandy slope and back to Reid and Hotch. He was starting to feel sick and he thought it was probably the head injury. So he was glad to see the helicopter.
They lifted Hotch into the ambulance first. Reid sat with him gently cradling his broken fingers in his hands.
'Is he going to be alright?' Reid asked the medic.
'He is very ill.' he answered, as he slid a tube into his throat. They pulled off his coat and attached a heart monitor to his chest. They strapped him down and wrapped him to try to slow down the constant bleeding. 'He has some serious internal injuries. Do you know how this happened? Has he been raped?'
Reid nodded. Just minutes ago, he had been talking, now he was closer to dying than he ever was. They splinted his arm and immobilised his shoulder. They strapped his fingers together and put up a saline IV. Rossi was sitting in the helicopter now, and a medic was stitching his head wound. He was going to have to have an MRI scan at the hospital. Dave was being sick and they were worried about a bleed. Reid refused treatment until Aaron was stable, and Morgan still insisted that he was fine. The helicopter lifted off the desert floor.
'Hey, Aaron, we're home free.' Reid said. Aaron didn't speak, but his heart gave up the fight and v-fibbed. At once the paddles were applied to his chest and his body jumped. It took three tries before his heart showed normal sinus rhythm and Reid realised that he had been holding his breath.
Rossi and Morgan had watched in silence as Hotch was brought back again and again on the short flight to the Las Vegas Hospital. Reid had just told this man that he loved him. He prayed that that wasn't the last thing he said to him.
'Come on, Aaron.' Reid whispered as the 'copter landed on the roof of the hospital. 'You're there now. No one will hurt you again. You're safe.'
The OR team was waiting on the roof to take Hotch straight to the OR to stop the bleeding. His blood volume was low, and the wide bore saline drip could only do so much all the time he was loosing blood.
The other three waited in the relative's room for news.
'We've been here before.' Reid said. 'I can't believe that he could die now, when he's safe.'
Rossi sat by him again.
'Did you tell him?' he asked.
Reid looked at him and nodded.
'Then he has something to come back to.'
'What was that place?' Reid asked.
'I don't know. But I have a feeling that when we go back to find it, to arrest the kidnappers and rapists, it won't be there.'
Dave got his phone out and showed Reid the photographs he took. They seemed to be fading.
'By the time we get home to Quantico, I think the pictures will have faded totally. There will be nothing left for Garcia to work with.' he said. 'We will have no proof that the place even existed.'
'But there are four of us, Rossi. They have to believe.'
'Whole squadrons of witnesses saw the Foo fighters, and they weren't believed. Hundreds of people have seen UFO's and not been believed. What makes you think we will be?'
Before Reid could reply, a Doctor came into the room.
'Are you here for Mr Aaron Hotchner?'
