"Dr. Parker will see you now." The receptionist said to Reid that Sunday afternoon. Reid had been dreading this moment for days, and now, walking down the corridor, he felt like he was an inmate heading to the execution chamber.
Reaching room 202, Reid at first went to knock, trying to be respectful. But, however much he wanted to see her, he was still angry. Today was going to go poorly. If he managed to be remotely civil to her, it would be a miracle.
He opened the door and saw her arranging a few books on her shelves. Reid watched her and – hating himself even more – realized how much he wanted her and loved her. He wanted so much to hate her.
She turned and was a little startled to see him there. She looked distraught, like she hadn't slept in a few nights, and her eyes were puffy, like she'd been crying for a few days. Reid slowly closed the door. They stood in the stillness, each waiting to see who would break the silent treatment.
Reid finally decided it should be him. "I'm sorry about Fueller."
That was the trigger. Tears poured from her eyes as she nodded. Despite himself, Reid rushed forward and took her in his arms. She cried into his shoulder for awhile, clutching him hard as if her life depended on it.
"I tried." She finally said. She lifted her head, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I did everything I could, and nothing I said made a difference. And do you want to know what their defense was? That I was too young! That I was just trying to prove myself." She pulled away so she could see his face while she expelled her anger and frustration over the matter, "And then, they brought up the medication. The changes that you pointed out and I had nothing to say about them. They said if I felt he was strong enough to have such low doses of such light meds, then obviously he was strong enough to be released back into society." She wiped her cheeks, which did no good because she just continued crying. "I knew if I told them I knew nothing about it, that would be cause to have my license taken from me."
"Yeah, because… you never do anything immoral like that." He retorted as a joke.
As soon as it was out of his mouth, he regretted it. Fortunately, it only caused her to laugh as more tears ran down. "You know, I'm crying here!"
He smiled and took her in his arms again. She held him in return. "Thank you," she said into his shoulder.
"You're welcome," he replied. Reid buried his nose into her hair and breathed deeply.
"Did you just smell my hair?" she asked, not looking up.
"No," he lied.
She pulled back and looked him directly in the eye. "Spencer… we can't."
"I know," he answered. "But I still love you, Riley."
She swallowed her nerves again, and said. "I'm sorry… I wish I felt the same way. You're wonderful and… you are the best friend I ever had, I just… I don't love you like that."
This time he didn't think she was lying.
"Eventually, you will get over this. It's just a crush."
He nodded, accepting the hurt.
…
"Hey, kiddo," Garcia said coming over to Reid's desk a few mornings later.
"Hey," he said. "Did you need something?
"Just checking on you, handsome." She said with a small head tilt, meaning she was feeling sorry for him. Reid wished everyone could just let it go. The only two who didn't act that way were Rossi and Hotch, who remained thankfully out of the loop.
"I'm fine," he said. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"You know Reid, if you both weren't arranged the way you are… I'm sure things would have turned out differently."
"No, they wouldn't." Reid replied, leaning back in his chair.
"I'm sure she would have realized-"
"No, Garcia… she told me that she doesn't love me. She likes me as a friend, that's all." He paused, "Well, at least there's no rule saying we can't be friends."
"Honey, you'll get over her. And someday you'll find someone who loves you and who you really want."
"Riley," Reid said.
"I know you want Riley, but-"
"No, Riley's here!" He pointed towards the door where, in fact, Riley Parker had just entered.
His first instinct told him she was here for Hotch, but instead she came right to his desk.
"Spencer," she said.
"Riley," he repeated, standing up. "Hi,"
They stood in silence, staring at each other. Riley looked scared, like she was being followed or something. In her arms was a brown file. Reid, being caught off guard, was unsure what to say.
"Oh, uh… you remember Penelope Garcia, right?"
"Nice to see you again, Dr. Parker," Garcia said, offering her hand.
"Likewise." She said, accepting the shake. She was looking very hassled and turned back to Reid. "Um, I need to talk to… um, Hotch and possibly Agent Rossi."
"Well, they're both in their offices right now. Would like me to go with you?"
She nodded, and Reid could tell she was not far from petrified, having seen this same demeanor the morning after.
"Okay, well, after you." He led her in the correct direction, sharing a worried glance with Garcia. She looked frightened and knew she was thinking the same as he. Did Hotch and Rossi know something?
"Hey, Hotch," Reid said, standing at the office door a moment later. "Dr. Parker is here to see you."
"About what?" he asked as Reid and Riley stepped in.
"I need to discuss something with you." She said before Reid could answer. "Is it possible to have S.S.A. Rossi in here as well?"
Hotch agreed and went off to find him. Reid would have been happy to do it himself, but he seemed to obey Riley. Reid began to wonder… was there more than a professional relationship there?
"What's going on?" Reid asked. "Do they know?"
"Keep your voice down," she said. "What, do you want your whole team to know about it?"
He didn't have the heart to tell her they already did. Reid went over to take a seat. He needed to sit down before his shaking legs made him collapse. His chest felt tight and painful; he hoped he wasn't having a panic attack.
Hotch returned a moment later with Rossi. Reclaiming his seat, Hotch sat at his desk and Rossi stood next to Riley.
"Agent Rossi, this Dr. Parker, she did the evaluations for the team a few months ago and she's been serving as Dr. Reid's psychiatrist since then."
"Oh, I see," he said. "Nice to meet you, doctor. I hope Dr. Reid hasn't sent you yourself to the looney bin."
She smiled nervously. "Not yet," she joked. "I wish I could be here on better circumstances, but I've come to ask for your team's help."
She opened the file on the desk and started to launch into the case of George Harrison Fueller. Reid felt his heart rate go back to normal and the chest pain recede. He was sure they had been outted. As he realized the world wasn't crashing down on him, he stood and joined the group at Hotch's desk.
No one interrupted her as she explained about Fueller and how he had become her patient. It was all leading up to something intense, Reid was sure.
"Now, not long after he was released, the police said a woman about 20 was last seen. She was reported missing the next morning and three days later, police found her body right next to route 619. The coroner's report," she pulled another long, extensive file from whence the other papers, "claims she'd been tortured for at least two days, possibly three. She was covered in electrical burns, cigarette burns, and small incisions all over her limbs caused by razor blades. She had signs of multiple rapes, probably over the entire three days and finally bled to death after having her throat slit. She'd been dead at least six hours before being found. It's the same MO that Fueller used on his victims. I believe this young girl died at his handy work. I need your team's help to catch him and put him away again."
Rossi and Hotch exchanged a long look. Riley quickly glanced at Reid and then back to the other two. Finally Hotch spoke up.
"Are there any other victims?" he asked.
Riley looked disheartened. "Not yet," she stated.
"Dr. Parker," Rossi said. "We… don't want to turn you away…"
"But you are," she said. Not realizing it, Reid placed a comforting hand on her arm.
"I'm sorry, Riley," Hotch said, standing up. "I would love to help you. I know you wouldn't waste our time intentionally. But I could never justify having the team work on this when there's no other evidence or victims. We don't even know if another murder will happen."
"So you're saying another innocent girl has to die before you'll even lift a finger? Is that what you're telling me, Aaron? How many women have to die before you'll attempt to stop him?"
"Riley," Reid hissed.
Rossi spoke up again. "Dr. Parker, you have to understand, we have thousands of cases sent to us and we can only work on the ones with the most pressing amount of danger. Dr. Reid will tell you that."
All three looked at Reid for a response. He wasn't really sure how to answer. He wanted to agree with Riley, but still remain faithful to his team. He took a deep breath, staring in Riley's eyes, before looking back to his superiors.
"Couldn't we just have everyone look over the file? Maybe have Garcia search for some things on this girl, see if there's a connection to Fueller or his past victims?"
Riley looked shocked he had actually sided with her. Hotch seemed annoyed while Rossi showed no emotion.
"No, Reid, we have another case we have to worry about. Riley, I'm sorry, we can't help you. You may leave your case with Agent Jareau and she'll decide when and if we should intervene."
Defeated, Riley gathered her papers. "Thank you for your time," she said quickly, rushing out the door. Reid went after her without a glance at the others.
"Riley," he called. She was moving extremely fast. "Riley, wait!"
He finally grabbed her arm and got her to stop right at the elevators. "Riley, I'm sorry."
"Another girl is going to die now and there's nothing I can do!" she yelled.
"I know," he said, grabbing her other arm so she had to listen to him. "You did what you could."
"I have to figure out how to stop him!"
"What are you going to do, hunt him down yourself? Stalk him until he strikes again?"
"No," she said. "I don't think I'd do well on a stake out. I get bored easily."
Reid smiled and she let a small one escape. He desperately wanted to kiss her, but doing it here would be suicide. He glanced over and saw Hotch watching them from his office door.
"You better go," he said, releasing his grasp on her. She stood, waiting for the elevator doors to open.
"Thanks for your help back there," she said as the doors opened. She stepped inside.
Reid reached his arm out to stop them from closing. "Hey, if you… if you want me to look over that stuff later…"
"… Are you going out of town?" she asked, hopeful.
Disheartened, he nodded. "Yeah, we're heading to Austin, I think."
She sighed, the hope was gone. "Well… let me know when you get back and we'll look at it then."
"Keep me posted." He said, stepping back to let the doors close.
"I've still got your number." She informed, and disappeared out of sight.
