The elevator opened and Riley made it up to the BAU. It was quiet. She'd never been here on a Saturday. The initial wave of panic from her encounter had left her. She was probably overreacting. Considering everything she'd been through, a certain degree of paranoia was expected. And because she was so constantly alarmed, Riley thought it best not to worry Spencer about this. At least for now, when he was so preoccupied.
He was on the phone when she walked in. His hand, busy making notes in the chicken scratch he called handwriting, his face twisted with concern. Riley hoped whoever he was speaking to had nothing to do with his mother. Diana Reid may hate her, but Riley certainly didn't want anything to happen to the poor woman.
She set her things next to his desk, getting no reaction from him. It had to be serious on the other end. Leaning on the edge, she listened to what seemed to be the end of the conversation.
"Honestly, I think the best option is for you to come to DC… I realize that, but I think your life is more important than your job, don't you? If you come to DC, we can go over your case and I can put you into protective custody… I work for the FBI, remember, I can take care of your contract with one phone call." Finally he let out a sigh of relief. "Great, I'll have a car meet you at the airport and it'll bring you to the BAU to meet Agent Morgan and me. You remember Agent Morgan, right?... Great, we'll see you tonight, and be careful… Bye." He hung up the receiver. He leaned back in his chair, finally smiling as he looked Riley over. "Hi."
"Hi," she leaned down to give him a quick kiss. "What was that about?"
Reid took a deep breath, "Well… that was an old friend… she has a little bit of a problem."
"She?" Riley emphasized. "Who, an ex-girlfriend?"
He couldn't give an immediate answer, looking slightly nervous. Riley was a bit stunned. "Wow, okay, that was a joke… didn't expect to be right."
"She's not exactly my ex-girlfriend… her name's Lila, I met her six years ago on a case. She was being stalked… and, well… I never slept with her or anything."
"I wouldn't care if you had." Riley assured. "It's not like we knew each other back then. You're allowed to have former girlfriends, so you can stop looking like you're about to throw up."
Reid relaxed, "Sorry… well, she – Lila, she's been getting… some notes."
Now it was Riley's turn to look sick. "I have a feeling I have an idea of what those notes said."
"She read one to me; it sounds like my father's." He explained. "And this morning she got some flowers with an eyeball bundled in them."
Riley made a grimace, but recovered. "Spencer… whoever this is has some fixation on you. I'm no profiler, but this is too much of a coincidence."
Unconvinced, "It could just be someone trying to scare me. Some kind of… wild goose chase."
"Maybe… unless Ethan got some notes, too." Riley mentioned.
Reid hadn't thought of that. He grabbed the receiver again and dialed for New Orleans Police. If Ethan had gotten similar notes, it would give a better view of this picture. But Reid hoped he hadn't. Because otherwise, it meant his family was in danger… and not just his parents.
…
Meanwhile, Morgan decided he needed a break. As usual, he was planning on taking it in Garcia's lair, but needed coffee first. He had almost stepped into the vicinity of the break room when he spotted Emily standing close to the pot, her back towards him. She was still sporting the black tank top, flowing over her tight fitting jeans nicely. Why he couldn't make himself go near her was a mystery. Emily had worn many excellent and even provocative outfits like this before, none of which had escaped Morgan's interest, but it wasn't enough to stop him from his daily routine.
Things felt like they had changed. Morgan had this happen with women before, many of which worked in the Bureau, but that was only after he'd slept with them. The most he and Emily did was tequila shooters at the bar, getting no closer than a few half drunken touches on the others arms or legs and leaving nothing horrible between them but a bad hangover. At some point, though, things seemed to change. And he wasn't entirely sure it was because of the appearance of Elle.
Morgan went to Garcia's without his coffee and knocked on the door. "Welcome to the Portal of Absolute Truth, Enter if You Dare," the voice exclaimed inside. Penelope Garcia was at least one constant he could rely on.
He stepped inside and Garcia looked back, delighted at her visitor. "My, I must have died and gone to Sexy Boy Heaven." She said with a grin. "What are you doing in here?"
"Needed a break, thought I'd spend it with my girl." He said, taking a seat.
She gave a smile, taking a break from some medieval role-playing game she was currently immersed in while running a futile search. "How did a girl like me get so lucky?"
Morgan gave a smile, his thoughts still wandering. It did not go unnoticed, either, as Garcia eyed him suspiciously. "Something's wrong."
"Why would you assume something's wrong?" He asked.
"Because if I said 'how did a girl like me get so lucky' you would have retorted back with 'just by being the goddess you are' or something equally flattering."
"You've been spending too much time around profilers." Morgan pointed out.
She turned to face him, giving him her full attention. "Come on, tell me. Something's on your mind, and I'm not going to leave you alone until you tell me anyway, so you might as well spill it."
He could trust Garcia, he knew that. But Morgan wasn't even sure what he was thinking. Then again, if a person could solve emotional problems on their own, they wouldn't need friends. He took a glance at the door, as if to check they were really alone, and cleared his throat.
"I realize a person can't get a grasp on their feelings without a certain amount of time. Anyone with moderate intelligence knows that. But… it seems kind of impossible a man can know a woman… and not realize in a certain window of time how he feels about her."
Garcia gave a smirk. "I'm not sure I like this conversation if my Derek's attention is being pulled to another woman."
"Okay, let's talk about that. You know I care about you, Baby Girl… does it offend you when I flirt with other girls?"
Morgan had not expected that statement to take her by surprise. "Wow… um… well, I've never really thought about it… and I guess that pretty much answers the question, doesn't it? No, I wouldn't say it bothers me. I mean, I've watched you dance like a jungle cat at the bars and I've seen you flirt with girls around the office… mostly trainees and junior agents who have yet to learn they shouldn't mess with the King of Players… but, it doesn't keep me up nights."
"So you don't get… haughty and jealousy?" He pressed, wanting to be sure.
Garcia was intrigued. "Why, who's getting haughty and jealous?"
"Just answer the question, Miss Busy Body." Morgan couldn't help but smile with her.
"Not really. Maybe jealous someone else has your attention, but you're still my boy. I know you belong to me. Believe me, if I got upset every time you gave some girl attention, I'd never speak to you. I mean every girl you grind with on the dance floor or drink coffee with in the morning or whenever you tease Emily-"
Morgan shifted in his seat slightly. It seemed insignificant, and to anyone outside of this team, it would have gone unnoticed. But it was distinct in the eyes of Garcia, and she stopped short, surprised.
"Oh my God… it's Emily, isn't it?" Garcia asked.
"It's nobody you need to be concerned about." Morgan explained.
"You're interested in Emily!" She squealed. "Oh, I knew it! I knew you two had a connection! I sense these things!"
Morgan sat up, looking back at the door to make sure no one was coming in. "I am not interested in Emily!" He hissed. "How did you even come to that?"
With a giggle of delight, "You know, I always thought you gave her special attention, too. I can't believe you're just realizing this now!"
"I do not have feelings for Emily Prentiss!" His teeth were gritted, and Morgan began to wish he'd gone to the coffee pot and dealt with the outcome of that conversation than this. "Will you shut up before somebody hears you!"
"Okay, I'll stop," Garcia forced her giggles down. She reached out and patted his hand. "It's a shame you can't do anything about it while you work together."
Morgan let out a long sigh. "There's nothing to worry about because there's nothing to do."
As he finished, there was a knock on the door. "Come in, three's company, too!" She cried.
The door opened, revealing none other than the woman of the moment. Morgan noticed how Garcia turned immediately back to the screens. Not in an effort to look busy, he knew, noticing the smirk spreading over her face from the irony. "What's up, Prentiss?"
Emily didn't seem to suspect anything. "What are guys up to?"
"Oh, Morgan was just confessing his undying love for you." Garcia said quickly.
Morgan wanted to smack her, but of course he'd never hit a woman. And even if he did, Emily would have seen and knew there was some truth to that statement. He kept his cool, folding his arms over his chest.
"Ha ha, very funny. Listen, since JJ's not having any luck with the Fairfax police, I thought it might help to try to speak with some of Larissa's employees at the mini mart. If we can get some information on our own, it might point us in the right direction. You want to come with me?"
"That seems a little excessive for a case we're not investigating, don't you think?" Morgan asked, thankful she put her blouse back on.
"I don't know, Reid's still convinced he's seen this before. Anyone else, I'd say you're right, but… this is Reid. If he's reminded of something and can't remember, that makes me nervous. I think we should exercise every angle."
"I don't know." Morgan muttered with a small smile. "It's getting into the afternoon, most of my Saturday is already gone…"
"We can stop for lunch afterward. I'll buy." She explained.
He gave a shrug, as if he would have refused, with or without the promise of a meal. "Meet you at my car."
"I'll grab my stuff." Emily said, leaving the office.
The door closed with a soft snap and Morgan stood up. He glanced back at Garcia, looking back at him with a smile. "I do not have feelings for her."
"Whatever you say, Baby." Her attempt to keep her giggles down was beginning to fail.
Morgan took a step to the door and looked back. "What did you mean, though? That I give her special attention?"
"I don't know, mostly little things. Things you probably don't notice." Garcia stated. Her expression sincere.
"Like what? Give me an example." Morgan demanded.
Over the rims of her purple glitter glasses, her eyes gave a sweet sparkle. "Well… how many other girls do you refer to as 'Princess'?" she asked.