A/N: Another chapter down! Will the team get there in time? Will anything ever be the same?

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DISCLAIMER: This story contains violent content, as per usual. Proceed with caution. Also, I unfortunately don't own Criminal Minds.

They lay back by the pipe, each going through their own world of pain. The three agents had matching blood stains on the front of their shirts, just like Tom had promised. They were branded now, forever marked with the letters of his name. The wounds were not deep enough to kill, but they would sure as hell scar. Spencer, JJ, and Emily were breathing hard as they leaned against the stone wall. Tom whistled idly in the center of the room. He hadn't left after the torture, like he usually did. It was strange, and wildly unsettling.

Reid could viscerally feel the dilaudid leaving his system. It was heaven in the sense that he could think clearly again, his usually sharp instincts returning. In every other way it was pure hell. He was drenched in a freezing sweat and shaking hard. Every nerve in his body shot randomly, leaving him with the strange and constant feeling of pins and needles. More, his brain screamed. We need more. Just another hit. One more dose.

He had forgotten how intense the cravings could be. Someone, Emily, was holding him close, trying to slow the tremors that wracked through his lanky frame. JJ was too far away to offer much comfort, but he appreciated her glances of encouragement.

Spencer decided to distract himself by cataloging all of their injuries. By the intense pounding in his temples, he could tell he was dehydrated. There were the bloody letters etched into his abdomen, right on top of the bruises from Tom's strong fist. Emily's torso was badly gashed even before he'd carved his name into her. From what he could see of her wounds, her chest was red and irritated. He could easily spot the beginning signs of infection. As for JJ, her nose and face remained colorful and swollen, on top of a now obviously shattered pinky. And she had the letters too, right below her belly button. Spencer had noticed that Tom had taken more time to cut the woman, glimpses of animalistic desire flashing in his eyes. His hands had wandered more than they should have. It made Reid so angry he could strangle the man.

Tom began to hum the same nursery rhyme again as he strolled over to the bloodied agents. He grinned a sick smile and pointed towards JJ and Reid.

"I haven't gotten my turn with you two yet. It's time."

Jennifer Jareau fought to keep her stomach contents down. She was hurting. There was no way her body could withstand much more of this. She watched helplessly as the man dragged a trembling Reid to one of the chairs. He was soaked in sweat and seemed to vibrate like a wind-up toy. JJ remembered the first time he'd gone through withdrawal so well that the memory played on command.

"JJ. Please," he crowed. His damp head lay in her lap. Reid stared up at his best friend with wide, frantic eyes.

"I can't, Reid. I'm sorry," she replied as firmly as possible. His pained cries tugged at every heartstring, but she would not give in. She would not let him continue.

"Just a little. Just a tiny bit," he begged. They were both crying now, the odd pair slouched the crimson couch. The brunette would not end his desperate pleas, and the blonde would not break.

"Do you remember the time that Garcia got back at Morgan for eating her cheesecake out of the fridge?" JJ whispered, smiling through her tears.

"Y-yes. JJ, I need to get out of here. I need to go."

She shook her head.

"Stay with me. Remember how she set up the whole fake Tinder profile? God, she checked every box. The pick-up lines, the steamy cover photos, the fake name."

Reid seemed to shift at this.

"Lucia," he choked, looking up at her.

"Yeah. Lucia. And she set up that whole game of cat and mouse, leaving him a note at the restaurant to meet her in the park, and then a note at the park to meet at the ice cream shop."

Reid smiled. "And she was there. And she made him buy her a mint chocolate chip cone in repayment for the cheesecake."

She stroked his hair for the rest of the night as he came down from his high.

The next thing she knew, JJ was once again strapped to the metal chair, this time beside Reid. Emily continued to yell weakly from the pipe, trying to distract Tom. Prentiss was always a hero, with more concern for others than herself, but JJ knew her attempts were futile. Tom had decided on his plan, and he was going to stick to it.

He pulled a small black item out of his pocket and placed it in JJ's bound hands before quickly stepping towards Emily, gun drawn against her dark hair.

"This round of my game gets slightly more interesting. Tase him, or I shoot her," he cooed.

JJ felt her blood run cold. He was going to force her to hurt her best friend, more than he already was. She felt like she couldn't breathe. Her eyes darted wildly around the room, searching for some way out of this impossible situation. Tom took Emily's chin in his hand and squished her cheeks. Prentiss writhed in his grip, trying to bite his fingers. He smiled and ran the gun along the bridge of her nose.

"Come on, Jennifer. Tick tock."

Reid looked at the blonde with a sad resignation. JJ could no longer fight the tears that fell on her bruised cheeks.

"Please. Don't make me," she begged the unsub. Tom just grinned.

"It's okay Jayje. I'll be fine," Reid breathed, swallowing his fear.

JJ closed her eyes, pressed the button, and held the taser weakly to Spencer Reid's arm.

.

Aaron Hotchner looked away from the screen. He and Dave were the only ones with the stomach to remain in the conference room. Garcia had left the second JJ tased Reid. The police chief had fled when Reid had been forced to return the favor to JJ. Twice. Morgan had violently departed when the unsub had forcibly kissed JJ after the ordeal.

Now it was Rossi and Hotch, hopelessly staring at the video monitor that had since gone black. It was almost the end of Day 2 of the agent's abductions, and they had very little in terms of information. Garcia had run through every Tom, Thomas, and Thompson in the area, first names and last. They all proved to be dead ends, leading the team to believe that Tom was an alias. JJ and Emily had wrenched some information out of the man. He had an abusive father, complacent mother, and most likely a couple siblings. This was not enough to go kicking any doors down though, and they were running out of time.

Outside the door, Penelope Garcia had followed Derek's rampage towards the door of the station. Her face was unusually makeup-less, eyes red and swollen from crying.

She found him outside, leaning on the wall gasping for air.

"Derek…"

She pulled him close and let him sob into her shoulder. He whispered the same phrase over and over again, self-hatred seeping into his words.

"It should have been me."

.

Emily watched JJ wipe her lips over and over again as if she would not remove the man's taste from her mouth. Tom had exited after he had his fun with the tasers, leaving the agents to their physical and psychological wounds.

Emily reached for the blonde's arm and pulled it away from where she was rubbing her mouth raw. She squeezed her friend's hand, careful to avoid her pinky.

"Jayje. It's going to be okay," she lied. JJ met her gaze, her face and eyes black and blue.

"He kissed me," she whispered.

"I know."

Emily felt tears sting her eyes at the sight of JJ's emotionless and numb expression. The fiery woman looked utterly broken. She pulled the blonde as close as she could, and simply waited for their nightmare to end.