Spencer liked Bob and planned to contact him again. Just over a week later, he called him, as he was about to leave for Miami on a case. He gave Bob his full name and contact information and told him he was headed out of town for a case, but he would like to meet and talk with him again when he returned if that was OK.

Bob was very glad to hear from Spencer and told him if something on the case made him have any feelings he wanted to talk about to call at any hour. Spencer thanked him and was feeling good about the new relationship. It was a good to know that he could call someone for help when needed.

The case was psychologically an interesting one with an unsub taking on the identity of whomever he kills, but not anything that made Spencer feel a need to escape. The other really interesting thing about the trip was that JJ had finally admitted she was in a relationship with Will LaMontagne. Everyone on the team had already known about it, but she felt it was a big secret.

That was one of the things he would talk to Bob about. He found it interesting how everyone talked so openly about most things, but they all kept a few secrets from each other. Now that his drug use was not a secret, he found it odd that he wanted to keep his attachment to the Beltway Clean Cops and Bob a secret.

Over the next eight months, Spencer had grown to really like and admire Bob. Bob was always trying to get Spencer to go to events with him and his friends. Most of his friends were active and retired law enforcement officers and Spencer was never sure how Bob knew them. Some faces he remembered from the AA meetings, but others would openly be having a drink. Spencer could have an occasional drink, but mostly when he attended someplace with Bob he would drink water.

Bob was very persuasive and many times Spencer was not planning to attend something, but Bob would insist he go. Bob kept saying "you need to get out and live a life if you planned to stay clean. You can't spend all your time at work or with your nose in a book. Those are ways of escaping life and not dealing with issues." Spencer tried to argue that he had always done that, but Bob always stated that "You have not always been an addict and some habits have to change if you plan remain clean for life."

He felt some of the same connection in not wanting to disappoint Bob as he did Hotch. One Sunday in September Bob convinced him to go to a family barbeque at the Virginia State Trooper Firing Range. Every year, the department would host this event. For $25 per person or $50 per family you could eat all you wanted. They had hamburgers, hot dogs, ribs and tons of salads and side dishes. For the admission fee, you received two tickets for either beer or wine, but water and soft drinks were unlimited.

The outdoor firing range was open to anyone that wanted to use it, including teens, with proper supervision. You could use your own weapon; most of the attendees were carrying their service revolvers. Or you could rent something from a variety of firearms. This was a great opportunity to try out something you had never fired before.

Spencer did not really want to attend, but Bob had called him two times in the last two days to see if he was called on a case and had even called him this morning to make sure he was coming. He was amazed at how many people were there. The firing range was separated from the picnic area by a huge wall and it was over 100 yards away from the barbeque pits and food. A small carnival was set up for the young children and there were dozens of them running around with their parents. He could hear the shots in the background, but it wasn't overpowering.

He saw Bob and went over to say hi. Bob was sitting with six of his friends and they were already eating. John walked up greeted everyone and motioned to Spencer to go with him to get some food. Spencer had met him a couple times before and remembered he was a DC Metro training officer. He guessed that he was between 35 and 40 years old, much closer in age than any of Bob's other friends in attendance. John mentioned that his wife Becky and both of his kids were visiting Becky's parents in Florida that weekend and were not able to attend the barbeque this year.

He was interested in the BAU and was asking questions about his job at the FBI as they moved through the food line. He had asked a few questions when they met before, but he was hoping to get more details today if Spencer didn't mind. Spencer was happy to answer any questions he had and actually was grateful for someone to talk to. There was a lot of activity going on, but Spencer didn't feel he fit in with the group at all.

They took some seats close to where Bob sat and John asked Spencer to tell him about a few cases. Spencer told a few of the interesting stories trying to stay away from the cases that had to use his memory to solve it. At one point, John asked what exactly an eidetic memory was and did it help his team solve some of the cases. Spencer realized that Bob had mentioned it to him so he told him the case of Randall Garner and how in his delusional mind he thought the BAU was the modern version of the Knights of the Round Table. John was fascinated that Garner had singled out Spencer and made his whole team play his game to save a girl. Spencer kept many of the details vague and when he did talk about his mom, he didn't mention her illness or how she knew Garner. During the story they had gone over to the desert table and grabbed several of the cookies and small cakes and some coffee.

When they had finished eating, John suggested that they go over to the firing range, but Spencer was hesitant. Firearms had never been his strong point, and he had even failed his certification one time. He didn't want to go over and make a fool of himself or the FBI in front of all these people. Somehow John picked up on his hesitation and said. "This place is a lot less intimidating than the practice ranges in the basement of my department. I'm sure it's the same at the FBI. You feel like the walls are pushing in on you and everyone up in the observation room is staring at you, right? I love to come and practice out here. No one is watching, they are all having fun with their friends and there isn't any room overlooking the range."

Spencer still wasn't convinced but he really didn't want to sit alone at the table, so he nodded and followed John over to the sign-in table. The volunteers made sure everyone was over 18 or had a parent with them, and signed a release form. They had many unusual guns to rent; some of them even were antiques. John and Spencer signed the forms and entered the range. It was huge. There were at least 20 separate stalls and small groups had formed in a few of them. It looked like there were many friendly wagers going on in the stalls.

John motioned for Spencer to follow him down towards the end. It was empty down there except one man in the very last stall. He was very intent on his firing and had 10 different firearms with boxes of ammo next to each one. John laughed "This is the only time of the year they set up all of the unique firearms to rent for the day. Some people look forward to this all year long and will spend the day trying different weapons."

John grabbed a pair of goggles and headgear to protect the ears and Spencer did the same. John took his service revolver out and fired 6 rounds at the target at the end of the range. All six neatly hit the center of the target. John motioned for Spencer to do the same and Spencer again hesitated.

John had him take of his headgear and told him, "This is the best place to practice. No one is watching or judging. I come here a few times a year just to relax and shoot." Spencer nodded, he knew there was no way to get out of it now, so he put back on the headgear and fired two shots. Both missed the target, but not by much. John told him to take a deep breath, keep your eyes on the target and exhale when firing. He noticed that not only was Spencer holding his breath, he would close his eyes as he pulled the trigger. Spencer fired again and hit the bull's-eye. He fired his last three rounds and hit the center each time. John smiled and told him again that he really hated the indoor ranges and this place made him a much better shot.

Spencer was beginning to think that John would make a pretty good profiler himself. He had somehow known that Spencer did not really want to discharge his weapon. Maybe from the stories he had told him at lunch. He had not made a big deal about it, nor shown any superiority at his expertise; just help Spencer relax and shoot. That was the main problem Spencer had with the firing range. He only went when he knew he was about to get re-certified and was always nervous. Maybe today's lesson would help him relax when he needed to do it again this November.