Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.

A/N: Shout out to tannerose5, guest, and TVHollywoodDiva for reviewing chapter 36.

Spencer and Clarissa woke up to their alarm at 6 AM, and 10 minutes later Spencer and Clarissa who were both wearing their gym clothing were putting a still sleeping Diana into her jogging stroller so they could go for a three mile run.

30 minutes later Spencer and Clarissa entered the house with a now awake Diana only to find Lucy in the kitchen making coffee while getting ingredients out for breakfast.

"Hi, Lucy." grinned Diana.

Lucy looked at the sweaty young parents as she thought about how every morning since Monday, she would come into the kitchen finding a note from the young parents stating that they went for a run and they were taking Diana with them.

"How was your morning run?" asked Lucy.

"Ran three miles for the fifth morning in a row." said Spencer.

Diana looked up at her daddy.

"You stinky, daddy." said Diana as she wrinkled her nose before looking at her mommy who had an arm wrapped around her daddy's waist, "You stinky too, mommy." said Diana.

Lucy looked at Diana.

"How about you help me make breakfast while mommy and daddy take a shower?" asked Lucy.

"OK." beamed Diana before her stomach growled.

"You can snack on some oranges while you help me cook." said Lucy as she took the two and a half year old girl from her father.

Clarissa looked at her husband.

"Let's go take a shower, Spence." said Clarissa as she thought about the possible quickie they could squeeze in.

A few minutes later Spencer and Clarissa were taking a hot and steamy shower together.

A half hour later Clarissa looked at her husband as they sat down for breakfast.

"Excited about your 25th birthday on Monday?" asked Clarissa.

"I am." said Spencer.

"I was thinking that we can celebrate your birthday on Sunday just in case your teammates wants to do something on Monday." said Clarissa.

"That's probably a good idea." said Spencer before looking at his wife, "Have you scheduled an appointment with a photographer yet?" asked Spencer.

"Our appointment is on the 17th at 10 AM." said Clarissa.

"OK." said Spencer.

"After I pick out mine and Diana's dresses, we'll pick out your outfit together." said Clarissa.

"OK." said Spencer.

Later on that afternoon Spencer watched the video that was sent to them before JJ stopped the video.

"So... the music's not added like a regular soundtrack. It's in the background, so if you turn it down, you also turn down the voices." said Hotch.

"Can we get Garcia to separate the audio tracks?" asked Morgan.

"She's working on it now." said Hotch.

"The sooner we hear how he talks to the victim, the sooner we'll know what kind of man we're dealing with." said Morgan.

"Tell us about Laura Clemensen." said Gideon.

"20 years old. Sophomore at Jacksonville University in Florida. Assumed to be the fifth in a series of rapes and murders over the past two years. Some women were abducted in parking lots, others while they were running." said JJ.

"And when was she reported missing?" asked Hotch.

"Technically she wasn't. Roommate thought she was visiting family. Family thought she was at school." said JJ.

"Close to her family?" asked Hotch as he thought about how he was closer to Clarissa than Sean.

"Very. She had dinner with them on Sunday." said JJ.

"That was 5 days ago, and nobody's seen her until now." said Hotch.

"She wasn't killed on the tape. And given forensics, other victims were tortured for weeks before they were killed, so I think we should operate as if she's still alive." said Morgan.

"Not for long, if the bastard gets his way." said Elle.

"Okay, I don't get it. This is the fifth abduction and now the second DVD. Why'd they wait to call us in?" asked Morgan.

"The last victim's family received this DVD two months ago." said JJ as she started to play the DVD, "Jacksonville P. D. thought maybe they'd get some more clues instead of just raise more questions." said JJ.

"Turn that down, please." said Gideon.

"There seems to be a natural escalation to the murders. It... began as brutal attacks against the victims, and now it's psychological attacks to the families." said Spencer.

"So if the thrill of the kill isn't enough to satisfy his sadistic needs, he needs to spread panic, and he thrives on that." said Hotch.

"Sadistic killers are typically strangers to their victims. It's easier for the offender to torture and kill someone that they don't know." said Spencer.

"Offenders. Man on the tape isn't doing this just for himself. He's playing to an audience, not her family." said Gideon as he took the remote from JJ, "Someone watching... Who can appreciate what he's doing, admire his sadistic skills." said Gideon.

"It is a characteristic of partners to record their crimes so they can relive the fantasy later." said Spencer.

"How can we be sure?" asked Elle.

Hotch noticed the camera moving in the video.

"Right there. The camera moves." said Hotch causing everyone to look at the screen.

"One guy tortures while the other records it. Master and servant." said Gideon.

"Jacksonville P. D.'s been looking for this killer for years. How long is it gonna take them to find a team?" asked Hotch before looking at his teammates and gave them a departure time.

A few minutes later Spencer was sending Clarissa a text message.

GOING TO JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, AND HOPEFULLY I'LL BE HOME IN TIME FOR US TO CELEBRATE MY BIRTHDAY ON SUNDAY. ~ SR

Spencer stood by his teammates while Morgan had the laptop in front of him.

"Again. That's the third time he's looked back at the camera." said Morgan.

"He's looking back at his partner." said Gideon.

"These two are clearly deranged and acting out their worst sadistic fantasies." said Hotch.

"Folie à deux." said Spencer in French.

"Rare psychological phenomenon in which two or more people share the same psychotic delusion." said Gideon.

"In its literal translation, yes, but it often refers to the bond that exists between two people that bring out the worst in each other." said Spencer.

"Most killing teams have a dominant personality that instigates and plans and a submissive one who's the eager accomplice." said Elle.

"So how do they decide who gets to kill?" asked JJ.

"Well, the dominant one will usually insist on taking the life." said Hotch.

"So what's the psychology behind making these DVDs?" asked JJ.

"It's a shared souvenir, allows the dominant to keep the submissive one motivated, loyal, and aroused." said Hotch.

"It's also about control. Built-in insurance policy for blackmail, just in case somebody gets cold feet." said Morgan.

"It makes you wonder what might have happened if these two people never had met." said Elle.

"Chances are the women would still be alive." said Gideon.

Garcia's face popped up on the laptop.

"Jacksonville P. D. just located Laura Clemensen's body. Some hikers found her under a bridge." said Garcia as she made a crime scene photo pop up.

"They never hide them. They're always easy to find." said Hotch.

"Guys, Laura Clemensen wasn't missing for more than a week. The time spent torturing is getting shorter." said Spencer.

"Has her mother been notified?" asked JJ.

"No. Not yet." said Garcia before signing off.

"We can cover more ground if we split up." said Hotch.

"Morgan and I'll meet local PD at the scene." said Gideon.

"I'll talk to Laura Clemensen's mother, and since she just lost her husband..." said Hotch as he looked at JJ.

"I'll go with you." said Elle.

"I'll start with the victimology, maybe find the reason why these women were targeted." said Spencer.

Spencer was pinning photos to a bulletin board when Hotch and Elle entered the room.

"Are there new victims?" asked Elle.

"Garcia just sent a list over of all the unsolved rapes and murders in the past three years. There are two that are particularly interesting." said Spencer.

Hotch looked at his brother in law.

"They look the type. Anything else?" asked Hotch.

"Well, aside from sharing similar physical traits, they were also posed. The only difference is they were manually strangled, which I think is why Jacksonville PD didn't find a connection." said Spencer.

"We find DNA on the first two?" asked Elle.

"That's the thing. It didn't match the recent kills, but check this out. What if the dominant one allowed the submissive one to rape the first two victims in order to sort of draw him in, and then once he's hooked, he began keeping the prize all for himself?" asked Spencer.

"You tell Morgan and Gideon about this yet?" asked Hotch.

"They're still at the crime scene." said Spencer.

"We confirmed that Laura Clemensen had good relationships with her family and friends. She got good grades and stayed out of trouble." said Hotch.

"Just like all the other victims." said Spencer.

"Did you guys notice that the package sent to the Clemensen family was only sent to Mary?" asked JJ.

"What about the first DVD?" asked Hotch.

"Right here." said JJ as she got up, "Why are they targeting the mothers?" asked JJ.

"The mother asked God to forgive the people responsible." said Spencer.

"And?" asked Hotch.

"The family that received the first DVD went on TV pleading for their daughter's life. That must have made the unsubs angry." said Spencer.

"So sending the DVD to the mother is a message in itself." said Hotch.

Spencer nodded.

"A very clear one. They don't want or need forgiveness." said Spencer before walking away a bit.

The next morning Spencer was wearing a yellow short sleeved button up shirt to keep cool during one of Florida's hot and humid days.

"We're up to 7 victims now?" asked Elle.

"The humiliating posing of the body can't be a coincidence. It's just too unique." said Spencer.

"The bruising on the necks. Looks to me like the first victim struggled. I'd say the killer probably lost his grip a couple times and really had to fight these women." said Morgan.

"That's why he switched from bare hands to a ligature. It's more efficient, controlled, and it doesn't sacrifice his sadistic need for a slow death." said Hotch.

"Because the DNA didn't match, Jacksonville PD just didn't put it together." said Spencer.

"Yeah, and since the weren't looking for 2 offenders..." said Elle as she started to look at the file that Spencer was looking at.

"Signature indicates these women had the same killers. We just need to figure out who the hell they are." said Hotch as he thought about how the heat was making him grumpy.

"Well, Jacksonville PD searched everywhere, even swamps, and still didn't find the victims' vehicles. I got Garcia tracing VINs, but my guess is they dispose of the cars just like they do the women." said Morgan.

"Yeah, but the bodies are easy to find. Why do they go to so much trouble to hide the cars?" asked Hotch.

Spencer stood near Hotch as they gave the profile.

"That's not to say that the submissive partner is in any way pure or innocent in this exchange." said Elle.

"If their criminal desire wasn't present, their partnership wouldn't work." said Gideon.

"The offenders share a common delusion. It's one that you and I would never accept, but it's this bond that justifies their actions." said Morgan.

"So we're looking for two sick minds who complete each other?" asked Detective Portillo.

"It's kind of like the perfect storm. Once these deviant personalities collide, they're deadly and unstoppable." said Spencer.

"Like the DC snipers or the Columbine assassins. Sometimes they've met in childhood. Other times, they can be related, like the Hillside stranglers, Angelo Buono and Kenneth Bianchi, psychopathic cousins who terrorized women in Los Angeles. The dominant partner makes the submissive one feel invincible. That's his reward for doing as he's told. Unfortunately there are countless opportunities for these twisted minds to meet, and once they've pulled off their vicious acts, the two accept this as common behavior and become bored with normal activity. They live only for their new reality. They're obsessed with it, addicted to it. And there's a fierce loyalty between the two. The submissive one, however, is usually less intelligent and easier to catch, and once caught, he is easier to turn." said Hotch.

"Lack of remorse increases their aggressiveness. Sexual sadists will stop when they're caught." said Gideon.

"And the need to psychologically torture the families." said Hotch just as JJ entered the room.

"Sorry to interrupt." said JJ.

A few minutes later Spencer was listening to Beverly Spears talk on TV about her daughter.

"If you've seen my daughter, please, Tiffany's all I have. She went for a run last night, and she never came home. She's my baby." cried Beverly on TV.

"Why weren't we told about this before she went on the news?" asked Gideon.

JJ turned off the TV.

"'Cause we didn't know about it. Tiffany was abducted from Middleberg." said JJ.

"That's nearly an hour away, and it's outside of Jacksonville's jurisdiction. Are you sure these are the same offenders?" asked Detective Portillo.

"She's their type. Grabbed her while jogging, just like their third victim. Middleberg's only an hour from here?" asked Gideon.

"If they see this, it's just a matter of time before they send a DVD." said Hotch.

JJ called a newscaster.

"Jennifer Jareau, FBI. You just aired a press conference with Beverly Spears. I need to speak to her immediately." said JJ as she left the room.

"These guys are impatient. They just dumped Laura Clemensen's body 24 hours ago." said Morgan.

"Which means they're more dangerous than they were yesterday, and Tiffany Spears is running out of time." said Hotch.

Spencer was sitting in Detective Portillo's office with Gideon when Gideon looked at Spencer who was drinking a bottle of water.

"How are you feeling about little Diana turning three in less than two months?" asked Gideon quietly.

"I'm sad since she's starting preschool next year." said Spencer softly

"So should I expect any news about Diana becoming a big sister soon?" asked Gideon.

"We want to wait until after Jack turns one." said Spencer as he thought about his nephew.

At that moment Hotch and Elle entered the room.

"Garcia's checking Mike Kroger's whereabouts when the women were abducted. Some of his alibis already check out." said Elle.

"What about Tony Canardo?" asked Spencer.

"Morgan's still outside his house waiting." said Gideon just as an officer came into the room.

"Excuse me. Agent Gideon, there's someone here who wants to talk to you." said the officer.

Gideon got up and left the room causing Spencer to get up and stand in the doorway.

"Mrs. Canardo. What happened?" asked Gideon causing Spencer and Elle to see a beaten up Amber.

"After you left, I got nervous, so I went to find Tony." said Amber.

"Please, sit down." said Gideon as he led Amber to a chair.

"And he... he knew something was up, so..." said Amber.

Gideon looked at an officer.

"You got a Kleenex?" asked Gideon before sitting down, "What'd you tell him?" asked Gideon.

"Well, I told him the truth, that the FBI was asking questions." said Amber.

"So he hit you?" asked Elle as Gideon removed a Kleenex from a box.

"I wasn't completely honest with you about Tony. He fell off the wagon a while ago. I just was afraid to say something. I didn't wanna betray him. He's my husband." said Amber.

"No, it's... it's good that you're here with us. You're safe here." soothed Elle before looking at Gideon, "I'm gonna go tell Portillo and Hotch that they should meet Morgan." said Elle before walking away.

Spencer noticed the ring on Amber's finger causing him to think back to Hotch and Elle telling him about the ring that Mary Clemensen wanted back.

"Mrs. Canardo, can I ask you a question?" asked Spencer gently.

Amber looked at Spencer.

"Yes." said Amber.

"Is that ring new?" asked Spencer.

"Tony won some money playing poker. He bought it as a gift." said Amber before looking at Spencer again, "Why?" asked Amber.

"Looks a lot like Laura Clemensen's." said Spencer.

Amber shuddered as she quickly removed the ring and placed it onto the table.

Spencer watched live feed of Tony handcuffed to a table.

"If we're gonna get anything out of Tony, we gotta praise him. He's the dominant. He thinks he deserves it." said Hotch.

"Confirm instead of undermine his expectations. Make him think he's smarter than us because he saw it coming." said Morgan.

"We don't have much time." said Gideon.

Hotch left the room to join Tony causing Spencer to pay attention to the live feed of Tony holding up his handcuffed hands.

"I know. I'm sorry. That's just standard procedure. Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. I'm supervising this task force. I just wanna say that this case, your case, is... Remarkable. You've got people at the BAU shaking their heads." said Hotch on the TV.

Elle looked at Spencer who nodded.

"What about you? You shaking your head?" asked Tony.

"Absolutely. Seven victims in three years. You've got every woman in Jacksonville living in fear. That's pretty much what you wanted, isn't it?" asked Hotch.

"I'm sure whoever's responsible for it is enjoying it." said Tony.

"The BAU would like to study you, interview you, with your permission, of course." said Hotch.

"Show me what's in the boxes." said Tony.

Hotch grabbed a file.

"This. They're all full. It's all you. We can... We can open all the boxes if you want." said Hotch.

"No. I wanna see my lawyer." said Tony.

"Well, Tony sure lawyered up quick." said Morgan.

"He's playing games." said Gideon.

"Florida state wants to make a deal if you tell us where Tiffany Spears is." said Hotch.

"This guy's been to jail before. He knows how to keep his mouth shut." said Gideon.

"What do you think, I'm stupid?" asked Tony.

"Far from it." said Hotch before getting up and left the room.

Morgan saw Tony lay his eyes on the crime scene photos.

"Look at that. Notice how he's focused on those two pictures." said Morgan.

"We can't forensically tie him to those victims, but we're certain that he posed those bodies after death." said Spencer just as Hotch entered the room.

"Well, that's certainly not working. I'm not getting anywhere with him." said Hotch.

"Is the wife still here?" asked Gideon.

"We wanna put her in a room with him?" asked Elle.

"We need to humanize him. I think she could do that." said Gideon.

"How? He abuses her." said JJ.

"And she takes it. She's subservient to him." said Gideon.

"You think she'd do it?" asked Elle.

"If we wanna find Tiffany Spears, she'll have to." said Gideon before leaving the room.

"It's worth a shot." said Hotch.

A short while later Spencer was watching the live feed of Amber talking to her husband with Gideon.

"Honey, I need to know where... Where the girl is." said Amber.

"Don't you mean... They need to know? Why should I tell them anything? What have I got to gain? They're pinning us for seven murders, Amber." said Tony.

"I can't believe you and Joey killed them all. Seven! None of this would have happened if Joey had stayed away. We were on our way to better things. Joey messed that up for us. I need you to tell me, Tony. Where would Joey take the girl?" asked Amber.

"I can't." said Tony.

"I'm begging you to end this. Tell me now. Where's the girl?" asked Amber.

"There's this... Storage unit. Joe's dad is the only one who has the key." said Tony.

A few minutes later Spencer looked at his teammates.

"Joe's dad? Isn't he in a wheelchair, though?" asked Spencer.

"Only for the last 2 years. Henry Davin could have raped and killed the first two women three years ago, then brought in Joe and Tony to continue his work." said Gideon.

"Maybe it's the only satisfaction he can get. Now they record it, and he lives it though them." said Hotch.

"So it was a team of three." said Spencer.

"We found Laura Clemensen's hair at Henry's house. It makes sense." said Morgan.

"Let's take a ride." said Hotch.

"Let's go." said Morgan as he followed Hotch.

Spencer watched the video feed.

"He's really playing a tough guy with that officer, huh?" asked Spencer.

"He played the tough guy with Hotch. It wasn't antagonistic. It was defensive." said Gideon.

"False bravado? You think he's wearing a mask?" asked Spencer.

"Let me see Amber's tape." said Gideon.

Spencer turned on Amber's tape and after a few seconds of watching Gideon noticed something.

"Why isn't she scared?" asked Gideon.

"She looks scared to me." said Spencer.

"No. Look. She initiated eye contact, right there. If she were afraid, she'd look anywhere but his face." said Gideon.

Spencer watched the footage.

"She's looking at the victims, and she doesn't really... She doesn't seem that repulsed. She actually... Looks surprisingly calm." said Spencer.

"He's studying her. He's waiting for her lead." said Gideon.

"Where did Joey take the girl?" asked Amber.

"She just gave him an order." said Spencer.

"He's protecting her. He's giving her an out." said Gideon before running out of the room causing Spencer to charge after him.

"Where is she? Where's the girl?! Where is she?!" asked a demanding Gideon as he looked at an officer, "Told you to watch her." said Gideon.

A few minutes later Morgan and Hotch were on the phone.

"We analyzed what we recorded of Tony and Amber. Turns out she's the dominant one." said Gideon.

"Garcia finally isolated the soundtrack on that DVD. Turns out it was Amber giving the orders." said Spencer.

"That means she's the one doing the killing. Where is Amber now?" asked Hotch.

"She told the cop she was going out for a smoke and walked out the back door." answered Spencer.

"We're running out of time. You've gotta find out where they're holding Tiffany." said Hotch.

"Yeah, I'll change the approach." said Gideon as he left the room.

Spencer followed Gideon only to be stopped by JJ.

"You're gonna wanna look at this." said JJ.

Spencer quickly read the report.

"Joey Davin's DNA didn't match the first 2 victims. That means neither could Henry's." said Spencer.

"So who raped the first two girls?" asked Elle.

Gideon quickly walked away.

Spencer was watching Gideon's new approach when his work cellphone rang.

"Reid here." answered Spencer.

"No time for pleasantries. I was able to unseal a file regarding Amber Canardo." said Garcia while Spencer put his phone on speaker for Elle.

"What does it say?" asked Spencer.

"When Amber was 15, she walked into a Tallahassee hospital, raped and beaten something awful. Doctors deduced she was being abused by her father and her brother. Eventually they convinced her to go to the police. But when she did, mom showed up and told them that Amber was lying." said Garcia.

"Wow. She obviously did nothing to protect Amber from the abuse. She feels betrayed by her mother and now receives extreme sadistic pleasure in watching the same thing that happened to her. Strange. In this case the abused actually became the abuser." said Spencer.

"That doesn't happen a lot?" asked Garcia.

"1 in 8." said Spencer.

"We found the one." said Garcia before hanging up.

Spencer hung up his phone while sighing as he continued to watch the live interview before grabbing the nearby walkie talkie.

"Gideon, Garcia found out that Amber was abused by her brother and her father. They'd take her to the woods." said Spencer softly.

A short while later Spencer was listening to Detective Portillo on the walkie talkie.

"We got Amber. Tiffany Spears is alive." said Detective Portillo causing sighs in relief to happen.

"All right. Thank you." said JJ before hanging up, "Jacksonville P. D. found the remains of a body on the grounds of the cabin. They think it's Amber Canardo's old boyfriend.

"And 10 will get you 20 that DNA will match the first 2 victims." said Gideon.

Spencer walked away from the small kitchen area with a cup of tea so he could get some sleep when he got home.

"At least the families will finally have closure." said Spencer.

"And we did save Tiffany Spears." said Morgan before looking at Spencer, "Excited about your 25th birthday on Monday?" asked Morgan.

"Part of me is excited, but I'm also sad." said Spencer.

"Why?" asked Morgan.

"My 25th birthday means that this birthday marks 20 years since I got to celebrate my birthday with my parents while this birthday marks six years since I've celebrated my birthday with aunt Ethel and uncle Gordon." said Spencer.

Morgan looked at Spencer.

"I didn't get to celebrate 23 birthdays with my father, so I know what your saying." said Morgan.

Three hours later Spencer quietly entered Diana's bedroom and he smiled at his sleeping daughter before giving Diana a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Daddy loves you so much, baby girl." said Spencer as he stroked his daughter's hair before leaving the bedroom.

Five minutes later Spencer was in the master bathroom stripping himself so he could take a shower when the bathroom door opened causing Spencer to smile at his wife.

"Room for one more?" asked Clarissa as she licked her lips at the sight of her naked husband.

Spencer looked at his wife and thought about that after spending over five years and 10 months with Clarissa that she looks more beautiful than never.

"There's always room for you, but I really want to wash away the sweat from Florida." said Spencer.

"Aaron did send me a text grumbling about the humidity." smiled Clarissa as she closed the bathroom door and started to remove her pajama shorts and her husband's old MIT t-shirt.

A minute later Spencer and Clarissa were in the shower together.