Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds. The occasional scenes from episodes of Criminal Minds in this story belong to the writers of Criminal Minds and CBS. No copyright infringement intended.
A/N: Shout out to Daisyangel for being the 150th reviewer for this story and also a shout out to fishtrek, criminalmindsrocks, Fashionista7, and Pattou59 for reviewing chapter 27.
Whoo-hoo, I'm recovered enough to be free from isolation! Even though I survived COVID-19, I was still told to wear a mask in public which I did when I took the bus to my favorite restaurant to celebrate being out of isolation.
It's September 17th of 2007 at the beginning of this chapter meaning that Doubt has happened while Violet and Arthur are now four-months-old. I'm warning you guys that Spencer was not found asleep in Gideon's office by JJ while there is a character death at the end of the chapter.
Spencer was sitting in the wooden white rocking chair that had violets painted on them as he looked down at four-month-old Violet who's face was red while she screamed, "I know that you're not daddy's happy little flower right now, but daddy needs you to calm down so he can get some sleep, flower," pleaded Spencer.
Maeve who was sitting in a white rocking chair that had knights painted on them looked down at Arthur who was also red-faced and screaming in pain, "Mommy knows that you're not a happy baby boy right now."
Two hours later, Violet and Arthur had still not gone to sleep when Mary and Joe entered the nursery.
"Are Violet and Arthur still fussy?" asked Mary.
Maeve nodded, "Yes, mom."
"Why don't you two go to bed while your father and I deal with Violet and Arthur," said Mary.
Spencer stood up as he kissed Violet's forehead, "Daddy loves you, flower," said Spencer before he reluctantly handed Violet over to his father-in-law, "I'm going to listen since I have to be at work in six hours."
Joe smiled as he took the rocking chair that his son-in-law was sitting in, "Seems like working for a hierarchical government agency has it perks since you listen to commands well."
Maeve looked at her daughter, "Please hand over my grandson, Maeve."
Maeve cradled Arthur close to her, "I can't mom."
Mary shook her head, "I'm not taking a no for an answer, Maeve. You and Spencer both need sleep."
"I'll feel like a bad mom for giving up on taking care of Violet and Arthur when they're teething for the first time, mom," said Maeve.
Mary shook her head, "You and Spencer won't be considered bad parents for handing Violet and Arthur off to their grandparents so you two can get some sleep while everyone knows that your father and I moved in to help you take care of the twins when Spencer has to travel for work."
Joe nodded, "There were times that your mother and I had to hand you and Johnathon off to our parents when you and your twin brother were teething so we could get some sleep, princess."
Spencer stood up and held out his arms for his son as he started to use his eyes on Maeve, "Please give me Arthur so your mother can take care of him, Maeve. When we got together, you've gotten onto me about letting my grey matter get some rest and drink less coffee when you found out how I was an insomniac who is addicted to coffee."
Maeve sighed as she handed Arthur to her husband, "You win, but you better not teach Violet and Arthur how to use their eyes to get what they want."
"I make no promises since Violet and Arthur might learn how to use their eyes to get what they want on their own," said Spencer as he kissed his son's forehead, "Daddy loves you, hobbit," said Spencer before he placed his son into his mother-in-law's arms and led Maeve out of Violet's and Arthur's nursery.
As soon as they entered their bedroom, Spencer looked at Maeve, "Please don't complain about being a bad mother right now because it's normal for babies to start teething at four-months-old while it's OK to accept help when the twins are keeping us up all night."
"I know, Spencer," said Maeve.
A few minutes later Spencer and Maeve were asleep in their bed while knowing that their alarm clock would be waking them up at 6 A.M. since they still had to get Stephanie off to school with their neighbors.
Over four hours later at 7 A.M., Spencer up from his bowl of Cheerios that was in lactose-free milk and had cut up strawberries and bananas in his cereal looked at his half-sister who was eating a bowl of dry Cheerios with cut up strawberries and bananas since he, Maeve, Mary, and Joe were all too tired to cook, "Even though you're sleeping on the floor above Violet, Arthur, and me; I hope that Violet and Arthur didn't keep you up all night."
"I slept with my headphones in my ears while I listened to music on my iPod," said Stephanie.
"Just make sure that you don't have the music be too loud so you don't damage your ears," said Spencer.
"I didn't, Spencer," said Stephanie before looking at the two baby swings that held her niece and nephew, "Are Violet and Arthur better now?" asked Stephanie.
"They are, but we'll have more rough nights ahead," said Mary.
"Just let me know if you want my help taking care of my niece and nephew at night," said Stephanie.
"You know that right now the rule is that you can stay up late to take care of Violet and Arthur on Friday and Saturday nights since you still need to be well-rested for school," said Spencer firmly.
"And when it's summer vacation you can stay up later to help," said Maeve.
A half-hour later, Stephanie had already left for school when Spencer was making sure that he had everything in his messenger bag and his go bag when he looked at Violet and Arthur who were both having tummy time on the floor while the twins babbled to each other, "What are you two talking about?" asked Spencer.
Violet grinned at her father as she started to babble while a little bit of drool dribbled down her chin, "Eee geee deee, Da."
"Are you telling me that you and Arthur are starting to feel better?" asked Spencer.
"Aye!" said Violet before she started scooting across the floor.
Spencer smiled at the sight of Violet and Arthur scooting on their stomachs, "Pretty soon you two munchkins will be able to crawl."
A few minutes later Spencer, Maeve, and Mary left for work at the same time while Joe ended up having to comfort his grandchildren.
Spencer yawned as he exited the elevator causing JJ who was heading towards Garcia's new lair to look at him as he chugged the remainder of his to-go cup of coffee that he brought from home.
"Are you OK?" asked JJ.
"Violet and Arthur both started teething last night, so Maeve and I were up half the night comforting the twins until Maeve's parents took over caring for Violet and Arthur so Maeve and I could get at least four hours of sleep," said Spencer.
"Must be nice to have your mother-in-law and father-in-law living with you, Maeve, Violet, Arthur, and Stephanie," said JJ.
Spencer nodded, "Having my in-laws living with Maeve and me helped us immensely," said Spencer before looking towards Gideon's office, "Gideon hasn't shown up yet?" asked Spencer.
JJ shook her head, "No."
Spencer pulled out his phone to call Gideon only to get voicemail and hung up, "It's been two weeks since I talked to him and I ended up getting voicemail again," said Spencer before looking towards Hotch's office as he thought about Hotch and Gideon getting suspended for something the team couldn't prevent and he avoided talking to his aunt for the past two weeks since he thought that is aunt wasn't being fair on Hotch and Gideon, "Is Hotch here?" asked Spencer.
JJ looked at her watch, "Uh, he's not due for a half-hour, but you should probably let Maeve know that you're going to be heading to Milwaukee today."
"I will," said Spencer as he headed to the break area so he could fix himself another cup of coffee as he called Maeve telling her that he'll be heading to Milwaukee.
After Spencer, Chief Strauss, Morgan, and JJ were done briefing on the plane; Morgan and JJ both got up and walked away while Spencer looked at his aunt who was still sitting next to him, "Even though you're both my aunt and my Section Chief, I hope you know that I'm not happy that you're trying to force Hotch to transfer. Your sister is thankful that Hotch has been there for me for the past four years while she would most likely scratch out your eyes and disown you as her sister, my aunt, and Violet's and Arthur's great-aunt if she has been lucid for the past two weeks," said Spencer quietly before thinking about coffee, "Can you please move so I can get myself some coffee before we land? Violet and Arthur were giving Maeve and me a hard time last night since they started teething, so I barely got any sleep last night."
Chief Strauss nodded as she stood up and walked away to where she was sitting so she could think about what her nephew just told her while realizing that she was hurting her nephew by trying to take away a boss that her nephew enjoys working under and respected.
A couple of hours later, Spencer stood in front of the map of Milwaukee with Morgan and Detective Wolynski.
"I have triple patrol in the area and I've got every available unit recanvassing," said Detective Wolynski.
"It's tough knowing they're out there and we're still a step behind," said Morgan.
Detective Wolynski, Spencer, and Morgan made their way to some chairs to sit down.
"You know, it used to be a running joke that if you told people you were from Milwaukee, all they wanted to talk about was "Happy Days" reruns. And then Dahmer happens and they ask you about it as if it's the same thing. As if it's entertainment. But I was in that apartment," said Detective Wolynski.
"Gideon, one of our bosses, says that there are things that attach to you that you can never wash off," said Spencer.
"All right it, is it possible we're looking at this the wrong way?" asked JJ.
"What do you mean?" asked Strauss.
"Well, we're trying to zero in on the unsub. Now, you guys tell me, but... if he really is using his son, wouldn't the trauma manifest more clearly on the boy?" asked JJ.
Spencer squinted his eyes at JJ's idea.
"Can your analyst get a list of all the children in the area that we're targeting?" asked Strauss.
"Garcia can get you whatever you want," said Morgan.
Strauss quickly used the land-line to call Garcia who answered on the first ring.
"Talk dirty to me," said Garcia in a sultry voice.
Spencer kept himself from laughing as he watched his aunt's reaction while Morgan face-palm himself and JJ held back her giggles.
"This is Section Chief Erin Strauss," said Strauss.
Garcia gasped as she spoke in an embarrassed tone, "Ma'am, I think it goes without saying that I was expecting it to be someone else."
Spencer kept his face neutral as he watched Morgan run a hand over his head.
"I need a list of every grade school in the Third Ward and Wauwatosa," said Strauss.
"Yes, ma'am," said Garcia as she started typing, "The Third Ward has one public grade school, but there appear to be four private schools that draw from that area."
"And Wauwatosa?" asked Strauss.
"That would be nine, ma'am," answered Garcia.
"And how many students?" asked Strauss.
"3,200," answered Garcia.
"Can you also get me a list of every guidance counselor that deals directly with the student body in that area?" asked Strauss.
"Certainly, ma'am. And again, I'd like to a…," said Garcia as she tried to apologize but only for Strauss to hang u.
Chief Strauss looked at her nephew, JJ, and Garcia, "You need to present these counselors with a profile of a troubled kid."
A few minutes later, Chief Strauss pulled her nephew aside and looked at him, "Does technical analyst Garcia always answer the phone with sexual phrases like the way she did a few minutes ago?" asked Chief Strauss quietly.
"That's the first time she answered the phone with that phrase," said Spencer.
"I'm already planning on sending Agent Morgan and Technical Analyst Garcia to a sexual harassment seminar," said Chief Strauss before she shooed her nephew off to visit the schools with Morgan and JJ.
The next morning, Spencer watched his aunt slip on Claire Thompson's hair causing him and Hotch to both quickly catch his aunt who was hanging onto the metal fence.
"Are you all right?" asked Hotch.
Strauss looked at the body as she started to stutter, "I st-I stepped on her hair."
Hotch looked at his youngest agent's aunt as he calmly spoke, "If you need a second, take a second. This is what it is. Just don't let the public see you break down."
Chief Strauss nodded as she looked at her nephew who gave her a nod and mouthed at her that they would talk later before she walked away.
As soon as Strauss walked away, Emily looked at the crime scene, "This is a different area from the other dumpsites, isn't it?" asked Emily.
"He's getting smart. He knows where all of our manpower will be so he's changing locations," said Spencer.
Morgan crouched down a bit, "How long before he changes when and where he abducts them?" asked Morgan.
"He does that, we're back at zero," said Emily.
At that moment Claire's husband was approaching the crime scene, "Claire?" asked Bill Thompson.
Morgan looked at JJ and Emily, "No, no, no, no. We gotta keep him out of here," said Morgan as he, JJ, and Emily walked away to take Bill away from the crime scene.
As soon as Morgan, JJ, and Emily were out of earshot, Hotch looked at Spencer who looked a bit more at ease with him and Emily being there, "Morgan told me that you're worried about Gideon."
"I keep on calling him, he doesn't call back," said Spencer softly.
"He's probably at his cabin. That's where he goes when he... needs to get away," said Hotch while Spencer stood up to his full height, "Even though I heard that you haven't been getting much sleep because of Violet and Arthur teething, Reid, I need your head in this."
Spencer nodded as he softly spoke, "I know."
After Claire's body was taken to the morgue, Spencer was driving his aunt and himself to the police station while Hotch, Emily, JJ, and Morgan rode in another SUV so he could talk with his aunt in private, "Are you going to be OK, Aunt Erin?" asked Spencer softly.
Chief Strauss sighed as she looked at her nephew who was keeping his eyes on the road, "It's been years since I dealt with crime scenes, Spencer."
"I vomited when I first saw my first few crime scenes, but over time I was able to develop a strong stomach and not get sick at crime scenes," said Spencer before his eyes darkened a bit, "I doubt that the rest of my teammates and I can never handle the smell of fish cooking again."
Chief Strauss nodded as she thought about learning that Hankel constantly burnt fish hearts and fish livers during the two days he held her nephew hostage and now she avoided cooking fish too to keep her nephew from having a flashback when he, Maeve, and the kids come over for Sunday dinner, "I wouldn't be surprised if none of us would eat fish again."
"It's going to be hard to tell Violet, Arthur, and any other children that Maeve and I have in the future that we don't buy fish sticks to cook since I already had to explain why we don't eat fish to Stephanie when she asked if we could buy fish sticks to eat for lunch or dinner," said Spencer.
"Knowing Violet and Arthur, they'll understand," said Chief Strauss.
"I hope so," said Spencer.
Chief Strauss thought about her nephew telling her that he hasn't told his mother about what she's been doing because of Diana not being lucid for the past two weeks, "Are you going to be telling your mother about me trying to break up the team?" asked Chief Strauss.
"I'm not since you allowed Hotch and Emily to work the case with us," said Spencer.
Chief Strauss sighed, "Thank you and I'm sorry for trying to break up your team."
"I'll only accept your apology if you apologize to Hotch for trying to transfer him and to Emily for using her as a spy to help you climb up the ladder," said Spencer.
"I will," said Chief Strauss.
After returning from the crime scene, Hotch looked at Detective Wolynski, "So what's around the dumpsite?" asked Hotch.
"Here's the old printing press of quad graphics, and the paving yard, and then the concrete factory where we found the body. None of them visible from the highway," said Detective Wolynski.
"You don't end up there by accident," said Emily.
"So we go back to the schools, we eliminate the third ward, and we target problem kids whose fathers have held blue-collar jobs over the last 10 years," said Hotch.
Spencer thought about how he behaved after his father abandoned him and his mother, "What if he's not a problem kid?" asked Spencer.
Morgan looked at Spencer, "What?" asked Morgan.
Spencer hesitated as he shook his head, "Forget it. It's off the textbook profile."
Hotch looked at a nervous-looking Spencer, "What is it, Reid?" asked Hotch.
Spencer nervously looked at his teammates as he knew that he would be describing himself, "Sometimes when a parent is unstable, especially if the other one's out of the picture, you'll do anything to be the perfect child."
"Like help your father abduct women?" asked Emily.
Spencer looked at his team, "They're never late for school. Even with the abductions, the disposal of the bodies, it's always timed perfectly so the kid will be on time to school. I don't think the killer would care. I think the kid would."
Hotch quickly left the room to call Garcia.
After John Smith was arrested and Emily who was hit by a wooden plank was cleared to fly home by the paramedics the team was flying home when Chief Strauss looked over to the couch where her nephew decided to snag an hour of sleep during their flight home, "Seeing my nephew perk up when you and Prentiss arrived made me realize that I shouldn't have tried to transfer you. I'm sorry about trying to ruin your career the past few months, Aaron," said Chief Strauss.
"I don't have intentions on taking your career," said Hotch.
"I know," said Chief Strauss.
Hotch looked over where Spencer was sleeping, "He had an uneventful year when it came to his abduction, becoming a father to twins, and finding out that he has a 12-year-old sister that he ended up taking custody of."
"I know, but it's good that Spencer was able to bounce back from every obstacle that's been thrown to him," said Chief Strauss.
Hotch thought back to Spencer profiling the unsub's son David Smith, "He basically profiled David Smith as himself."
Chief Strauss shook her head, "My sister keeping me away from him for over 22 years didn't help Spencer at all since I was forced to miss milestones or be there for him when he needed me, but when I heard that William abandoned Spencer and my sister, I had to trust my older brother to help them out while I sent money to Gordon to help take care of Spencer."
"Would you have called the police and report Reid's father for child neglect?" asked Hotch.
Chief Strauss shook her head, "Gordon and I discussed reporting William for child neglect, but we both agreed that separating Spencer and Diana would have killed Diana so I just had to trust Gordon to take care of Spencer and Diana while I made sure to send money to Gordon to help take care of Spencer while I vetted the professor he stayed with while he was a minor attending CalTech."
"Does he know about the money and you making sure that he was safe at CalTech?" asked Hotch.
"I told him," said Chief Strauss before glancing at her nephew, "I can't believe that he'll be 26 in three weeks."
"Me too," said Hotch as he thought about finding out that Haley was still cheating on him despite spending the past four months going to marriage counseling causing him to tell Haley that they were done and eventually ran off to Milwaukee to cool down as he spoke to himself in a tone that Chief Strauss wouldn't hear, "Hopefully he'll be able to manage to be a better husband and a father than I was."
Over two hours later, Spencer drove up the driveway to Gideon's cabin and sighed in relief when he saw Gideon's car parked in front of the cabin. After getting out of his car and turning on his flashlight, his eyes went wide when he saw Gideon's dead and decaying body laying on the ground with one hand to his chest while one leg was so swollen because of a bite mark that most likely belonged to some type of venomous snake.
A/N: I know that I'm evil with this cliffhanger, but I'm not that much of a Gideon fan while I know I have a few readers who hate Gideon. The cause of death will be explained in the next chapter.