--Warning!: Strong language ahead--

14

Round and Round

Caleb had a patrol car outside his house, just in case. There was no way for Harrington to know about him, but they had to be careful.

Spencer was sitting on the couch, drawn into himself, sipping water.

"I SWEAR TO GOD, BOY IF A SINGLE COP SHOWS UP I'LL KILL YOU!!"

"No-no one will c-come, Ma-Master! I sw-swear!"

"THEY BETTER NOT!"

"NO, MASTER, PLEEEAASE!"

He shivered. He hadn't said anything since Caleb had left. Gideon could see him thinking. He watched him get more and more frustrated, despaired by internal conflicts.

I'm a Good Boy, he thought. I'm a Good Boy because I saved Caleb. No…No I'm a Bad Boy because Master punished me for it. I disobeyed Master. Bad Boy, Bad Boy!

Gideon sat down next to him, snapping him out of his daze.

"What's the matter, Spencer?" He asked. Spencer shook his head.

"I…I don't know what to think," he said quietly. "I kn-know I wanted to save Caleb. I h-had to. But…was I a Good Boy for s-saving him? B-But Master said I wa-was a B-Bad Boy for it. I…I don't kn-know. I don't know!" His confusion was easy to see, especially in his tears.

"Shh…Listen to me," Gideon said calmly, putting a hand on Spencer's shoulder. "You are not a…a Bad Boy. Do you understand? Saving Caleb was a very brave and good thing to do. You…You are a Good Boy. Harrington was wrong. You aren't bad, you're good. No matter what he's told you, you're good."

Spencer bowed his head, crying.

"I do-don't understand," he whispered. "I want to, bu-but I can't. I c-can't…"

"I know, I know, it's alright. Shh…" He hugged Spencer, trying to calm him. "It's okay. You're good, Spencer. You're good. Shh…" He hated this. He hated that Spencer felt this way and there was nothing he could do to help him. He wished he could make it all go away. He wished Spencer's photographic memory didn't exist. He wished that he could take every tiny memory and every ounce of pain away from him. But he couldn't. He was too late.

Spencer yawned, digging slightly at his eyes.

"You should get some sleep," Gideon said gently, standing and guiding him up.

"Okay," Spencer said softly. Gideon watched the young boy walk into the makeshift room. He pressed his hand to his temple. He wanted to catch this man five minutes ago. And he wanted him dead, just like the others.

"Gideon!" Morgan exclaimed, running around the corner. "Gideon, we need you in here, now."

He nodded and followed Morgan into the conference room. "What's going on?" He asked.

Garcia had her laptop set up next to one of the phones the station provided. The rest of the team was sitting around it, looking at it as if it were death itself.

"It's him," Hotch said. "It's Harrington. I want you to talk to him." Gideon nodded and sat at the empty chair in front of it. He looked sideways at Garcia, who was ready to start tracking the unsub's location.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

"Born ready, sir." Gideon pressed the speaker button, taking Harrington off of hold.

"This is Special Agent Jason Gideon of the FBI," he said as calmly as he could muster. "I'm told you wish to speak to me."

"I wanted to talk to all of sons a bitches," Harrington snapped. "You have what's mine. You took it."

"Yours?" Gideon said curiously. "I do believe you are mistaken. You can't own a human life."

"I don't own anything that's human, I own him." Morgan's knuckles cracked. Garcia was working hard at tracking the phone as fast as the computer would allow her.

"You'd better give him back now," Harrington threatened, "Or it'll get real ugly real fast. Just give him back to me and no one else gets hurt."

"You're not goin' anywhere near him!" Morgan snarled. Hotch cast him a warning glance.

"You want to bet money on that? I will get him because he is MINE! There's nothing you can do to keep him from me. He is MINE! I'm calling you to give you a chance to save this city from a panic. You still can, just give me The Boy."

"M-Master?" Everyone stopped breathing.

I didn't want to be alone. That's why I came in here; being in that dark room made me remember horrible things. I was scared, but walking in here and hearing that voice made it worse. That voice paralyzed me with so much fear I thought I was going to have a heart attack and throw up at the same time. Not this. Not this, please. Not Master.

"You there, Boy?" I couldn't move, neither could anyone else. "Answer me!" I jumped, instincts kicking in. I fell on my hands and knees, everything rushing back to me.

"Y-Yes, Master!" I whimpered.

And as suddenly as everyone stopped moving and speaking, they started again.

Garcia's fingers moved so fast you could barely see them. Morgan's anger increased tenfold.

"Hang up, now!" Prentiss yelled desperately.

"We can't, I'll lose him!" Garcia said.

"You've been a very Bad Boy. Very, very Bad Boy!"

"I'm s-so s-s-sorry, Master. Pl-pl-please, please…"

"Hang up, damn it!" Morgan bellowed.

"Not yet!"

"Do you have any idea what I'm gonna do to you when I get you, Boy?!" I could barely hear Master over all of the yelling from everyone else. "I'm gonna punish you worse than you've ever been punished!"

Morgan knelt down next to me.
"Kid, get up, it's alright, get up," he said frantically. "C'mon, c'mon, get up." I shook my head hard, trembling violently.

"DON'T YOU DO A FUCKIN' THING THEY SAY!" Master screamed. I whimpered and looked at the floor. Morgan tried to coax me up again. I refused to move. I couldn't. Master would punish me.

"It's alright, Kid, get up," Morgan urged.

"No, no, no, I can't!"

"DON'T YOU SAY A WORD, BOY!"

"Hang UP DAMN IT!" Morgan bellowed. I jumped.

Can't talk, can't talk, must be silent, must be so very quiet, can't say a word.

"Spencer, get up, please. It's okay, Kid. Get up."

"I'm gonna find you, boy. And when I do, I'm gonna kill everyone around you, nice and slow, just like the Others. And you're gonna watch every second-"

"HOTCH, PLEASE!"

"And then I'm gonna kill you. I'll beat you 'til you can't move, cut you, stab you, hit you, break you, burn you-"

"GARCIA!" Hotch bellowed over everyone else.

"I'm going as fast as I can!" She was crying.

I couldn't move. I couldn't stop shaking. And I couldn't help the silent tears that crept down my cheeks. I'd never been so scared.

"And do you know how hard I'm gonna FUCK YOU?!"

I couldn't breathe. I started to sob.

"Get up, Spencer. Please get up, you don't have to listen to him, get up!"

No, no I can't move. I can't move, I can't talk.

"I'M COMIN' FOR YOU BOY!"

"HOTCH!"

Hotch yanked the cord out of the back of the phone, silencing Master's laughter.

The room got very quiet again.

Morgan stood, furious.

"What the hell?!"

"Morgan-"

"Let's not do this now," Gideon said.

"Garcia?" J.J. said.

"I didn't get anything," she cried softly, looking at all of them. "I couldn't get anything."

"It's alright, Penelope," Emily said gently.

"No it's not! He goes through all of that and…and…" She buried her face in her hands.

Morgan turned back around to face Reid and try to get him to stand up again. His heart cracked.

Spencer had backed into the corner, his face in his hands, knees drawn to his chest, trembling. They were back at square one.

--:'(--