Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.
A/N: Shout out to Tannerose5, Hippichic81, and OhSnapItsMadison for reviewing chapter 37.
I'm so sorry about the delay for this chapter since I was dealing with intense writer's block for this chapter, but I'm sad to say that I'll be finished with this universe soon while occasionally writing chapters for my missing scene series.
This chapter starts 14 days after the last chapter (So there's no two month time jump between Keeper and Scarecrow since I ended up creating my own timeline due to the time jumps that happened in this story), so let's just say that Emily has moved all of her belongings back to DC and Tara tracked down her brother a week ago since Mr. Scratch didn't go after Tara. This chapter will include a lot of family fluff before you get to my version of Scarecrow (Since there's no clinical trial, something else has to happen). So here's a warning that there will be tissues needed while you readers read this chapter.
Spencer looked at his now five year old daughter as the family of six ate breakfast.
"So what do you want to do until your birthday party this afternoon?" asked Spencer.
The curly light brown haired and brown eyed girl who had freckles scattered all around her nose and cheeks looked at her daddy.
"Have a date with you, daddy." said Piper.
"Its a date." said Spencer before looking at Albert and Ava, "Are you two going to help mommy get Piper's party ready?" asked Spencer.
"Yes, daddy." said Albert.
"Yes, daddy." said Ava.
Spencer looked at Piper.
"Is there anything special you want to do?" asked Spencer.
"Can we please go ride horses?" asked Piper.
"We can definitely do that." smiled Spencer.
Olivia looked at her husband.
"You should also take Piper out for lunch too." said Olivia.
"I will." said Spencer before looking at Piper, "Before we go to Rock Creek Park to ride horses, we'll pick out nicer clothing for our lunch date." said Spencer.
An hour and a half later the horse caretaker Amelia looked at Piper who was holding her daddy's hand.
"What's your name, sweetie?" asked Amelia.
"Piper Ann Reid." answered Piper.
Amelia smiled at the little girl who was wearing old jeans, broken in riding boots, and a polo shirt just like her daddy.
"Such a pretty name, and how old are you?" asked Amelia.
"Today is my fifth birthday." said Piper as she held up five fingers.
"Well happy birthday, Piper." smiled Amelia before looking at Spencer, "She definitely inherited your height genes from you because at first I thought that her height made her look like she's seven." said Amelia.
Spencer laughed.
"I've been told that there are times that I look younger than 35." said Spencer.
Amelia looked at Piper.
"What do you say about getting to ride a pony next to your daddy?" asked Amelia.
Piper looked up at her daddy.
"Can I daddy?" asked Piper.
"Since you've been riding a pony on your own for over a year, you sure can, goober." said Spencer as he adjusted Piper's helmet.
"When was your first time on a horse?" asked Amelia.
"I took Piper riding for the first time when she was 18 months old." said Spencer.
Amelia looked at Spencer.
"Really?" asked Amelia.
"My uncle owns a horse ranch outside of my hometown Las Vegas, Nevada. So as soon as Piper turned 18 months old, my wife and I introduced Piper to horseback riding whenever we went to Vegas to visit family." said Spencer.
"Impressive." said Amelia.
"Albert and Ava can ride ponies too." said Piper.
Amelia looked at Spencer.
"Siblings?" asked Amelia.
"Piper has three younger siblings. Albert and Ava are four while Piper's youngest sibling is 15 months old." said Spencer.
A few minutes later Spencer was lifting Piper onto a pony before he mounted himself onto a larger horse, and a few minutes later Spencer and Piper were riding on a popular riding trail.
Two hours later Spencer and Piper entered a nice family restaurant when the hostess looked at the father and daughter duo who were either dressed up in a suit or a pretty dress.
"You two are sure dressed up nicely." smiled the hostess.
"I'm on a date with my daddy since its my birthday." said Piper.
"Happy birthday, and how old are you?" asked the hostess.
"Five." said Piper.
"I have a five year old daughter myself." smiled the hostess before looking at Piper, "I'll make sure that you get a free desert on the house today." said the hostess before she led Spencer and Piper to their table.
Three hours later later Garcia had her phone out as she recorded Piper sitting in front of her birthday cake before everyone started singing "Happy Birthday". When everyone was finished, Spencer looked at Piper.
"Make a wish and blow out your candles." said Spencer.
Piper closed her eyes and as soon as she opened them, she blew out all five candles before everyone clapped and cheered before Spencer removed the candles.
A half hour later Spencer wrapped an arm around his wife as they watched Piper, Albert, and Ava play tag with Piper's classmates from school, friends from Mass, and classmates from gymnastics to burn off all the sugar they consumed from Piper's birthday cake.
"I just can't believe that Piper's five years old today." sighed Spencer.
"Me too." said Olivia.
Later on that evening Spencer and Olivia finished pitching up their large tent in their backyard and Olivia looked at her husband.
"Should we have breakfast cooked outside tomorrow morning to make it seem like we gone on a camping trip?" asked Olivia.
Spencer nodded as his ear length brown curls bounced.
"Let's get showers and baths taken care of before we light a bonfire and make some S'mores." said Olivia.
A few minutes later Spencer and Olivia were heading inside to get the kids cleaned up for bed before the family of six gathered around the fire that Spencer built so they could sing songs while making S'mores.
The next morning Spencer woke up to being given kisses by Piper, Albert, Ava, and Daniel. And as soon as he had his glasses on, he smiled at his four beautiful babies.
"What's with the wake up call?" asked Spencer.
"Happy Father's Day, daddy!" chorused Piper, Albert, Ava as all three older children hugged their daddy.
"Where's mommy?" asked Spencer.
"Mommy's making breakfast right over our fire pit right now." said Piper
Spencer instantly smelled the fire that Olivia was cooking over.
"I should probably go use the bathroom before we all eat breakfast." said Spencer as he started to get out of his sleeping bag.
10 minutes later the Reid family were sitting around their picnic table enjoying breakfast before they all went inside to get ready for Mass.
Later on that night Spencer who was wearing one of his favorite suits, a white dress shirt, and a purple tie to match his daughters' dresses smiled when Olivia came downstairs with Piper and Ava who were wearing matching party dresses and their hair styled.
"Ready to attend the YMCA's annual father and daughter dance?" asked Spencer.
"Yes, daddy." said Piper and Ava.
"I have something for you two girls." said Spencer.
"What is it?" asked Ava.
Spencer grabbed two containers out of a flower shop bag.
"I got you two corsages to wear on your wrists." said Spencer.
"Let me help you girls put them on before I take your pictures." said Olivia.
A minute later Olivia was taking a picture of her husband standing between their daughters while holding their hands.
"Now off to the ball you three go, and daddy's car won't turn into a pumpkin." said Olivia.
Piper and Ava giggled at their mommy's joke.
"You two girls ready?" asked Spencer.
Piper and Ava nodded, and a few minutes later Spencer had his daughters in their booster seats before he drove his daughters to the Father/Daughter dance at the YMCA.
The next day Spencer was sitting at his desk with JJ, Garcia, and Luke surrounding him as he told his teammates how Father's Day went for him before Garcia decided to breech the topic of the new team member that Emily's trying to get for them.
"Does anyone know when agent fill-in-the-blank is gonna start? Because I cannot begin my detailed, rumor based background check without a name." said Garcia.
"You couldn't find anything out with all your super powers?" asked Luke.
"Oh, ha ha, newbie. It's not like I haven't tried. I checked with all the mes in other units to see if any of their agents are transferring over. Nobody knows diddley squat." said Garcia.
"Well, I feel like Emily's been pouring over these resumes forever. I mean, the brass has to approve a new agent soon, right?" asked JJ.
"All I know is, whoever he or she is, they'd better be nice. That is the most important thing to me." said Garcia.
"To all of us." added Spencer.
Luke smiled at Spencer and JJ and thought about how they're both being nice to him while their kids are insisting on calling him uncle Luke.
"Amen. So whoever this well-qualified mystery person is, I say once they join, we change our name from The Magnificent 7 to The Awesome 8. Huh? It's perfect." said Garcia.
Spencer raised his eyebrows before he, JJ, and Luke all chuckled.
"Maybe." said Luke.
"Well..." said JJ.
"I don't know because I know that my days in this unit will be done soon." said Spencer.
"I'm declaring a dictatorship. You guys don't get a vote. Especially you, newbie." said Garcia as she pointed at Luke.
A few seconds later Rossi and Emily left Emily's office causing Spencer, JJ, Garcia, and Luke to look at Emily and Rossi.
"Sorry, guys, no news, but we have a case." said Emily.
"What?" asked Garcia just as her phone chimed causing her to look, "Oh, yeah, we do. This isn't good." said Garcia.
A minute later everyone was sitting down and Tara spoke up.
"Any news on the new agent?" asked Tara as she thought about Emily telling her that she decided to ask to add another member to the team just in case Spencer wanted to join Hotch a bit sooner than he planned.
"Radio silence." said JJ.
"Oh." said Tara.
"Let's get started." said Emily.
"OK, last night in Yakima, Washington, police received multiple 911 phone calls from the same neighborhood. They all reported a woman pounding on the door, screaming for help. She was hysterical. They received 5 calls in less than 5 minutes." said Garcia.
"Let me guess... Not one person opened their door to help her." said Rossi.
"Sad commentary on our times, but understandable. A stranger at your door could be a ruse to get into your home to rob you." said Spencer.
"Or worse." said JJ.
"All of the callers described the woman as being in her mid-20s and scantily clad. One even called her a prostitute. Said that a hooded figure grabbed her off the street, was driving a dark colored car." said Luke.
"So we have an abduction." said Tara.
"It appears so, but that not the only reason they called us." said Emily.
"Right, because when the local police were looking for the missing woman, they uncovered the remains of two female victims on the bank of a nearby creek. One was skeletonized, and the other was in a burlap sack. She'd been dead for three weeks." said Garcia as she showed some pictures.
Tara looked at a picture.
"She also has barbed wire wrapped around her waist." said Tara.
Garcia showed a picture of the identified woman.
"She being Debra McDermott, 27, from Moxee, Washington." said Garcia.
JJ looked at her file.
"Ran away from home at 16, multiple arrests for prostitution. Given the witness statements for the current missing woman, I'd say our unsub's got a type." said JJ.
"Any idea on the skeleton?" asked Luke.
Garcia shook her head.
"No, not yet." said Garcia.
"But her date of death is estimated to be three years ago." said Spencer.
"Three years and now three weeks. What are the odds he remained dormant between victims?" asked Rossi.
"We should look into recent local prison releases that match that time frame." said Emily.
"I'll search that now." said Garcia.
Tara decided that they could start giving Garcia ideas on what to look for while they have to deal with a long flight.
"He could have been sublimating his urges by reliving the kills." said Tara.
"Maybe he found a job or a relationship that satisfied him." said Luke.
"If either went sour, that could have triggered his killing again." said Spencer.
"The only thing we know for certain is we have two dead victims and a missing woman who's still out there. Wheels up in 20." said Emily.
Meanwhile at the Reid family home Olivia and Alex were getting the kids ready for a trip to the zoo when her cellphone rang causing her to see that it was her husband.
"Its daddy who wants to talk to us through face time." said Olivia as she accepted the call causing her and the kids to gather around the phone, "You have Piper, Albert, Ava, and me while Alex went to change Daniel's diaper." said Olivia.
Spencer smiled as he saw his three oldest children with his wife.
"I'm heading to Yakima, Washington in 20 minutes." said Spencer.
"That's far away." said Piper.
"It is." said Spencer before adding on, "Piper, Albert, and Ava; I want you three to behave for mommy while helping her out around the house." said Spencer.
"Yes, sir." chorused Piper, Albert, and Ava.
Spencer burst out laughing, and when he was finished laughing he looked at his kids.
"So what are you guys going to do today?" asked Spencer.
"We are going to the zoo, and I wish that you can come with us." said Piper.
"I wish that I can join you guys too, but I have a dragon to go slay." said Spencer as he heard JJ laugh, "But as soon as I get back we can go to the zoo." said Spencer.
"Yay!" chorused Piper, Albert, and Ava.
JJ suddenly came into view.
"Would you like uncle Will, Henry, Michael, and I to come along?" asked JJ.
Piper grinned when she saw her godmother.
"Yes." said Piper.
"After this new dragon gets slayed, auntie JJ and I will start talking about when we'll go." said Spencer as he didn't even realize that it would be awhile before that trip happens.
"OK," chorused Piper, Albert, and Ava.
"I have to get going." said Spencer.
"Please stay safe, daddy." said Piper.
"I promise." said Spencer.
"I love you, daddy." said Piper.
"I love you too, Piper." said Spencer.
"I love you, daddy." said Albert.
"I love you too, Albert." said Spencer.
"I love you, daddy." said Ava.
"I love you too, Ava." said Spencer just before grinned when he saw his 15 month old son, "I love you, Daniel." said Spencer.
Daniel happily babbled when he saw his daddy before Spencer looked at Olivia.
"I love you, Olivia." said Spencer.
"Love you too, Spencer." said Olivia.
"I have to go, and I'll try to call before bedtime tonight." said Spencer.
"There's a three hour time difference between Washington state and DC." pointed out Piper.
"Your right." said Spencer before saying goodbye and signed off.
"Let's get going." said Olivia.
A few minutes later Olivia and Alex got the kids loaded up into Olivia's SUV before Olivia started driving everyone to the zoo.
Spencer leaned against Rossi's seat.
"The unsub's probably using burlap bags to easily transport his victims." said Rossi.
"You know, burlap's an interesting choice. It could also be a forensic countermeasure." said Spencer.
"How so?" asked Luke.
"Despite its strength, the natural fibers in burlap break down with groundwater, exposing the bodies to the elements, so decomposition happens sooner, and IDing the bodies would be harder if not impossible." said Spencer.
"So it's exactly what the unsub would want." said Luke.
"By burying his victims, he's been able to go undetected for years." said JJ just as Garcia's face popped up on a laptop.
"Crime fighters, I've ID'd our abducted woman. Her name is Cheryl "Cherry" Rollins, 25, of Yakima, Washington, and you were right, she's a working girl." said Garcia.
"How'd they ID her?" asked Tara.
"One of her friends reported her missing, and I matched a 911 call that mentioned a very distinctive and eponymous tattoo on her decolletage. That means she has a tattoo of cherries on her..." said Garcia.
"Yeah. We got it." said Rossi.
"Garcia, send us everything you have on Cherry Rollins, and tell the Yakima P.D. that we'll need to talk to her friends." said Emily.
"Copy." said Garcia before signing off.
"Two out of his three victims are known prostitutes, so it speaks to his lack of social skills." said Tara.
"When we land, Tara, head to the dump site, JJ, Alvez, talk to the M.E., and the rest of us will set up at the local P.D." said Emily.
Spencer, Emily, and Rossi followed Captain Ferreri into the police station.
"Agent Prentiss, I'm Captain Ferreri. Thanks for coming in." said Captain Ferreri.
"Of course. This is Agent Rossi and Dr. Reid." said Emily.
"Well, it turns out that friend of Cherry Rollins doesn't want to come in to talk." said Captain Ferreri as she led Spencer, Emily, and Rossi towards the room she set up for them.
"Probably allergic to police stations. We'll go out and find her." said Rossi.
"Sure thing. In the meantime, we'll set you up in here." said Captain Ferreri as Spencer, Emily, and Rossi entered a conference room.
"We'll need to see your files on all the women reported missing from the area." said Emily.
"Well, "reported" is the key word. A lot of the time their own family members don't report them gone. Most of the missing are runaways, transients, drug addicts. They don't leave much of a paper trail." said Captain Ferreri.
Spencer walked over to a board that contained a map.
"We'll take what you have." said Rossi.
"If he was hiring his victims before killing them, we need to figure out how they were hooking up." said Emily.
"Well, most of the prostitution arrests happen up on North First Street." said Captain Ferreri.
"Nowadays, prostitution is very much an online industry. Who needs a pimp when you have Wi-Fi?" asked Rossi.
"Yeah, but he was probably smart enough to avoid using the Internet smartphone apps that leave a trail." said Emily while Spencer rejoined them.
"Could he be using a burner phone and a stolen credit card to hire call girls?" asked Captain Ferreri.
"It's possible." said Spencer.
Emily called Garcia.
"Garcia, are you there?" asked Emily.
"Yes, on every level of consciousness. How may I serve?" asked Garcia.
"Do Cherry Rollins or Debra McDermott have their own websites advertising their services?" asked Emily.
"Probing into the belly of the beast now. And... Oh, there are a lot of enterprising women, but I don't see anything for Debra or Cherry. I am finding a zero frills listing of local women available for, quote, "no strings attached sex."" said Garcia.
"Are they on it?" asked Rossi.
"Maybe. It's gonna take a second, though, because these women all use nicknames, and most of their photos are only showcasing certain body parts." said Garcia.
"Let us know if you find anything." said Emily.
"Roger that." said Garcia before hanging up.
"Captain, tell us about the creek where the bodies were found." said Spencer.
"Wyler's Creek. It's isolated, had an unexpected flash flood three days ago." said Captain Ferreri.
"That's probably what unearthed the two bodies." said Rossi.
"I'd like to set up a coordinated search grid for the creek and surrounding area." said Emily.
"I'll get my people on it right away." said Captain Ferreri.
"Thank you, captain." said Emily.
Captain Ferreri left the room.
"Are you thinking he dumped Cherry at the creek already?" asked Rossi.
"I hope not." said Emily.
"She's been missing less than 12 hours. We don't know how long he keeps victims before killing them." said Spencer.
"But we do know she was in fight-or-flight mode when he caught her. Hopefully that adrenaline is keeping her alive." said Emily.
Spencer got out of the front passenger seat of an SUV as he and Emily approached some of Cherry's friends who started to walk away at the sight of their guns.
"Ladies, relax. We're not trying to jam you up." said Emily.
"Lori Johnson?" asked Spencer.
"Yeah?" asked Lori as she pulled on her sweater.
"Hi. We're from the FBI. You reported Cherry Rollins missing?" asked Emily.
Spencer showed Lori his badge causing Lori to note his dinged up wedding band.
"FBI's here about Cherry? She's really in trouble, isn't she? You wouldn't be here if she wasn't." said Lori.
"Well, that's what we're trying to find out. You two were friends?" asked Spencer.
"This is our spot. We hang out together. You get to know a girl that way." said Lori.
"What type of person is she?" asked Emily.
"Thank you. Most people, they don't see us as people. They think what we do is who we are. Like I planned to do this for a living." said Lori before laughing "No way. Me and Cherry, we got plans." said Lori.
"Plans?" asked Spencer.
"Yeah. We're gonna open up a nail salon. It was her idea. She's always coming up with them, like, uh... Like once she said we didn't need pimps no more, that we could look out for each other." said Lori.
"How'd that go over?" asked Emily.
"I got beat good when I told my man. But, uh, Cherry said we gotta be strong. She got some of the other girls to do it, too." said Lori.
"Did she ever talk about a customer who made her afraid?" asked Spencer.
"We're talking about a really bad guy, someone who might be threatening girls with scissors or a knife." said Emily.
"No. I mean, you get your weirdos now and then, but word gets around real quick about a creep like that. But, uh, sometimes you don't know they got a bad attitude until you're alone with them." said Lori.
"You told the police that you didn't get a good look at the last customer who picked up Cherry that night." said Spencer.
"I never seen that car before. I should've paid more attention. It's my fault. Um, she's got a... She's got a little boy, Christopher. He lives with Cherry's grandma. Not many people know about him, but, uh... He's what keeps her going." said Lori as she passed Spencer her phone.
Spencer smiled softly when he saw a picture of Christopher.
"Whatever money she makes, she send to her grandmother to raise that boy. She loves him more than anything. You gotta find her." said Lori.
"We will work our best to find her." said Spencer.
Lori looked at Spencer.
"You have kids of your own?" asked Lori.
"Four kids." said Spencer.
"What are the genders and ages?" asked Lori.
Spencer pulled out his phone to show Lori a picture.
"Two boys and two girls all between the ages of five and 15 months, and my wife sent me this picture earlier since she and my youngest child's nanny decided to take them to the zoo today." said Spencer.
Lori looked at the picture and she smiled at the picture of Piper, Albert, Ava, and Daniel all standing together while holding hands.
"They're so adorable, and Christopher is also five years old." said Lori.
Spencer and Tara stood in front of the Yakima police department.
"We are looking for a white male, 30 to 40 years old, who's been targeting female sex workers." started Spencer.
"He appears to be a mission-oriented moral enforcer who may be forcing his victims to wear a cilice made of of burlap and fastened with barbed wire." said Tara.
"What's a cilice?" asked Captain Ferreri.
"Originally it was a garment made of coarse cloth or animal hair, used in some religious traditions to induce pain or discomfort as a sign of repentance and atonement." said Spencer before he and Tara took turns talking for a few minutes before deciding to talk about what the unsub was driving.
"He's driving a dark colored car and cruising the streets for his victims." said Tara.
"But because he has been able to dispose of his victims undetected for years, he's comfortable here. He most likely lives or works in the area." said Spencer before he and Tara finished giving the profile.
Spencer looked at Cherry's file.
"Cherry Rollins was 12 when she was put into foster care after reports of physical abuse at home. At 15 she dropped out of school and she's been on her own ever since." said Spencer.
"The way Cherry's friend talked about her, it made her sound like she has a lot of street smarts. And the fact that she organized other prostitutes despite the threat of violence from their pimps..." said Emily.
Spencer thought about his own inner strength that helped get him where he is today.
"That sort of life takes strong survival skills... You need the ability to size up any situation, act quickly, think on your feet." said Spencer.
Emily looked at Spencer and thought about how he is one the strongest men that she has ever known.
"Cherry's probably talked herself out of trouble more than once." said Emily.
"Not to mention she's a mother. It's gonna keep her fighting." said Spencer as he thought about his kids are being the reason why he fought to survive when he got shot in the neck.
Luke came into the room.
"We can rule out the Long Island serial killer as our unsub." said Luke as he took the chair next to Spencer. "Garcia found definite overlap between the East Coast and Yakima victims." said Luke.
"OK. The cilice, the barbed wire, disposal of the bodies in burlap bags near water, that all indicates ritualistic behavior." said Emily.
"There are no markings on the burlap and nothing special about the barbed wire. You can buy both of them just about anywhere." said Luke.
Spencer thought about his uncle's ranch.
"Yeah, they're universally found on farms, ranches, garden centers. The local Public Works Department could be using burlap sacks for help with road flooding." said Spencer.
"You said the cilice has a religious connection, huh? Maybe our unsub's a member of the clergy." said Luke as he looked at his two teammates who told him that they did or currently practice Catholicism.
"Opus Dei. It's connected to the Roman Catholic Church. It's frowned upon, but some members still practice mortification of the flesh." said Emily as she grabbed her phone to call Garcia.
"Currently there are 60 Opus Dei centers in 19 US cities, but none in Washington state. It might be someone just fascinated by or obsessed with medieval torture." said Spencer.
"Garcia?" asked Emily.
"Let me dazzle you with my brilliance." said Garcia.
"We're looking for individuals or groups in the area that may practice corporal mortification." said Emily.
"Corporal what, come again?" asked Garcia.
"Basically it involves causing yourself physical pain in the search for spiritual growth." said Luke.
"Seriously? Has no one heard of meditation?" asked a shocked Garcia before becoming serious, "Go on." said Garcia.
"Check social media sites, religious groups, self-help blogs, anyone who's using burlap, barbed wire, and water or a combination of the three in their quest for penance and self-sacrifice." said Spencer.
Garcia started typing.
"OK. I got a local thing called Tue Believers, sort of a loose-knit faith group that subscribes to fasting, abstinence, and ritual cleansing in order to live a righteous life." said Garcia.
"Do they have a headquarters in Yakima?" asked Luke.
"I wouldn't call it that. More like they meet in someone's living room." said Garcia.
"We need an address and a membership roster." said Emily.
"Coming right up." said Garcia.
"Alvez, Reid, go see if you can talk to this group's leader. Maybe our unsub is one of the faithful." said Emily.
The next day Spencer was looking at the board that contained crime scene photos when his cellphone rang, and when he saw that it was Dr. Hauser he instantly became alert.
"Is my mom OK?" asked Spencer.
"She's in the ICU right now." said Dr. Hauser.
"What happened?" asked Spencer.
"I'm sorry to say that your mother had a stroke that caused her to end up on life support." said Dr. Hauser as she explained where the stroke was located and how bad the stroke is.
Spencer instantly held back tears as he took a deep breath.
"So I need to make the decision if I want to pull the plug or not?" asked Spencer.
"Exactly." said Dr. Hauser.
"Right now I'm in Yakima, Washington working on a case." said Spencer.
"How long do you think it will be until your done with the case?" asked Dr. Hauser.
"I don't know." said Spencer just as JJ came into the room, "But as soon as I'm done with the case I'm going to talk to Olivia before I make my decision about if I should pull the plug or not." said Spencer just as JJ came into the room.
"I'll keep you updated on your mother's condition." said Dr. Hauser.
"I have to get going, and I'll make sure to answer your calls." said Spencer before hanging up and accepted coffee from JJ.
"Is everything all right?" asked JJ.
"It's my mom." said Spencer.
JJ looked at Spencer.
"I take it that something happened that caused her to go on life support since your mentioned pulling a plug?" asked JJ.
"My mom had a stroke that caused her to fall into a coma, so I have to make the decision about whether I should pull the plug or not." said Spencer.
"Spence, I'm sorry." said JJ as she pulled Spencer into a hug, "Are you thinking about heading back to DC right now?" asked JJ.
"Right now I want to help find Cherry so Christopher doesn't grow up without his mother because he's the same age as Piper, and after this case I'm going to talk to Olivia before sitting down Piper, Albert, and Ava and tell them about their grandma." said Spencer.
"Talking to Olivia and the kids will be the best choice." said JJ before looking at Spencer, "Is there anything I can do?" asked JJ.
"Babysit the kids so I can talk to Olivia without interruptions?" asked Spencer.
"Now that's definitely something I can do because then I get to spend time with my goddaughter and her siblings." said JJ before pulling Spencer into another hug, "I'm sorry." said JJ.
Spencer hugged JJ tightly as he allowed a few tears to fall down, and when JJ released him, Spencer looked at his best friend.
"Just please don't tell the others yet please since I want to tell Emily first." said Spencer.
JJ reached out and wiped the tears that had fallen down Spencer's face.
"I promise, but as soon as this case is over you should be there for your mom." said JJ.
Spencer stood in a room with Captain Ferreri as an officer brought in the last box.
"That's the last box of customer records from the Baldwin store." said Captain Ferreri before looking at her officer, "Thanks, Terry." said Captain Ferreri.
"Yep." said the officer before leaving the room.
"You sure you don't need any help going through all this material?" asked Captain Ferreri.
"I'm OK since I read 20,000 words per a minute. Thanks, though." said Spencer.
"Suit yourself." said Captain Ferreri before leaving the room.
After going through the receipts for 30 seconds Spencer angrily wiped a tear that was falling as he ended up replaying the conversation he had with Dr. Hauser in his head while he slowed down his reading before pushing himself to focus on the case since there was a five year old boy who needed his mother.
A short while later a more composed Spencer was briefing his teammates on what he found out.
"Going through the Baldwins records, I found three customers who for years bought supplies on a regular basis. That all abruptly ended around the time of Wendy Baldwin's disappearance. The first is Bertram Foley." said Spencer.
"Garcia, what have you got on him?" asked Emily.
"The Foley ranch raises horses and grass-fed cattle, and Mr. Fo... No, it's not him." said Garcia.
"How do you know?" asked Emily.
"I don't mean to be unkind. I'm sure he could do all kinds of nefarious things, but he's the spry age of 80 and in a wheelchair." said Garcia.
"Let's see, next up we have Fred Haven." said Spencer.
"Fred Haven. 35 years old, was the owner of the Haven orchards and apple farm." said Garcia.
"Was?" asked Rossi.
"Yeah. The bank foreclosed on it one month before Wendy went missing." said Garcia.
"Well, if Haven was having money problems, that could have been the stressor." said JJ.
"OK. He and his wife filed for divorce soon after." said Garcia.
"That could have been the trigger." said Luke.
"Where's Haven now?" asked Emily.
"Uh... Oh... he's serving 7 to 9 years at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac." said Garcia.
"Who does that leave?" asked Emily.
"Last up we have Kevin Decker. Customer records show him at the store every week.
"I got a John Decker. He owns a small farm next to the Baldwin store. Oh... his son, Kevin, is 28 years old." said Garcia.
"The father's name sounds familiar." said Luke.
"What do we know about them, Garcia?" asked Rossi.
"Father and son both live on a farm. Wife Susan Decker died in childbirth. Oh, snap. John Decker is a member of True Believers.
"That's right. He was inactive. Probably because the group was more mainstream Bible study and less fire and brimstone." said Luke.
"He might have felt they weren't righteous enough for him and took matters into his own hands." said Rossi.
"We need an address." said Emily.
"Sending it." said Garcia.
Emily looked at Spencer.
"Reid, find Lewis, get back up to the creek in case he shows up there." said Emily.
Spencer quickly went to the room and found Tara a few minutes later.
Later on that night Spencer fixed himself and Emily each a cup of coffee before heading over to Emily.
"Coffee?" asked Spencer.
"Oh, you are a lifesaver." said Emily before Spencer sat down across from her causing her to noticed the sadness in Spencer's eyes, "What's going on?" asked Emily.
"I need to take some time off." said Spencer.
Emily shuffled some papers.
"OK. When?" asked Emily.
"As soon as we get back. I normally wouldn't do this, especially with the new agent, but it's my mom." said Spencer as he wiped a tear, "She had a stroke and is on life support, so I'll need to make the decision about whether I want to pull the plug or not." said Spencer.
Emily gasped as she looked at Spencer.
"Spence, I'm so sorry." said Emily.
"I'm planning that I go home and get some sleep, and tomorrow I'll be talking to Olivia about what we should do." said Spencer.
"As you should. Listen, we'll be fine. You take as long as you need." said Emily.
"All right. Thank you." said Spencer.
"I have one condition. I need you to check in every day, no matter what. I need to know you're OK, and if you do opt to have the plug pulled, its OK if you have Olivia call me." said Emily.
"It's understood." said Spencer before wiping a tear, "Its just bad enough that I lost my father in November and now I'll most likely be losing my mom for good." said Spencer.
Emily reached over and took ahold of one of Spencer's hands which caused Spencer to put his free hand over Emily's.
"You need to let these emotions in like you told me over five years ago." said Emily.
Spencer allowed the tears to fall freely down his face as they sat in silence while holding hands for the remainder of the flight before Emily told him to get home to Olivia and the kids instead of going straight back to the BAU.
Spencer quietly entered Piper's and Ava's bedroom and he smiled softly at the sight of his sleeping girls, and after giving them each a kiss checked on his sons before heading into the master bedroom where Olivia was exiting the bathroom to see a distressed look on her husband's face.
"What's wrong, Spencer?" asked Olivia.
"Mom had a stroke and had fallen into a coma, so we need to make the decision about whether we should pull the plug or not." said Spencer as he wiped some tears, "Knowing mom, she would want me to pull the plug so she's no longer suffering from her schizophrenia, Alzheimer's, and dementia." said Spencer.
Olivia pulled her husband into a hug as she thought about her mother in law being on life support.
"Before we make a final decision, you should get some sleep." said Olivia.
"I was thinking the same thing too since visiting hours at the hospital are over, and tomorrow morning we can go to the hospital together." said Spencer.
"Are you going to take a shower before you go to sleep?" asked Olivia.
"I was thinking of a bubble bath, so can you please join me?" asked Spencer.
Olivia nodded, and a few minutes later Spencer and Olivia were preparing their bubble bath together before getting into the tub while they talked about anything except the case he worked on or his mom.
A/N: Spencer will make his decision in the next chapter, and its pretty obvious that you readers will figure out Spencer's decision since I gave a hint about another death in the family coming up. So tissues will definitely be needed as you read the next chapter.