Driving down the dirt path, Reid and Riley got their first sight of Marbury Hospital. The large building of red brick must have been standing at least a hundred years from the looks of it. It had a foreboding appearance to it, much like the sanitarium Diana Reid resided in. Unlike the road, the wrap around drive was pathed, surrounding the entire establishment. Reid was having a lot of trouble adjusting to these new traffic laws, trying his best to steer the vehicle into a spot in the visitor's parking area.
Clouds were gathered in the sky, as far as the eye could see. Reid adjusted his coat as Riley hurried over to walk with him. "Looks like it's going to rain again." He mentioned as they started heading to the entrance.
"Maybe it'll snow." She added, glancing at him with smirk.
Reid matched her smile. He put his arm around her and pulled her against him. "I hope so." He replied as her arms instinctively wrapped around his middle. He leaned over to place a kiss on the top of her head.
They walked up the steps and through the stone archway to the entrance. The lobby was quiet this early in the morning, without a single person in the waiting area. A young nurse sat at reception, her uniform looked like something out of the 1960s, in a white button up dress and a hat nestled in her honey blonde hair.
"May I help you?" She asked pleasantly as the two approached.
"Yes, I'm Dr. Spencer Reid, I'm assisting Scotland Yard on an investigation. I'm here to speak to Sarah Neilson, she's a trauma patient brought in last night."
"One moment, please." She said, picking up her phone to make a call. Reid looked around the lobby, observing the building. It was a bit dark in here, the walls painted a sage color. This place had a very unfriendly feel. In fact, it would seem like the perfect place for a black and white horror film. All that was missing was the Hershey syrup dripping on the walls.
"Yes, sir. I'll tell them, thank you, sir." The nurse said, pulling Reid's attention back. She hung up the phone, looking to the couple. "The Trauma Ward is on floor five and Mrs. Neilson is in room 523."
She grabbed two visitor passes, handing one to each of them. "Thank you," Reid said, clipping his on. Once she was ready, he took Riley's hand and lead her to the elevators, making their way to the fifth floor.
Riding up, they were alone in the car. Reid's eyes remained straight ahead, focused intently on the upcoming interview. He didn't realize Riley was staring at him until he felt her fingers swipe a lock of his chestnut brown hair, tucking it behind his ear.
He loved that tingling sensation he got when he touched her. She tried to muffle a giggle as the tip of her finger running along his jawline. At last, Reid turned to meet the sparkling eyes that had enchanted him since they met.
"What's so funny?" He wondered, quizzical.
"Nothing... it's just... us alone in an elevator, going to question a victim in the hospital, who can't talk... I'm having a sense of Deja Vu."
Reid grinned a bit, feeling his face turn warm. "At least this time we're not fighting." He said, he released her hand to run it along her waist, barely able to feel her lithe body through her coat.
"You never experience Deja Vu, do you?" Riley asked, moving a bit closer to him. "You remember everything."
"Sometimes, I get some kind of intuition that one experience is similar to another... I don't know if that's necessarily Deja Vu... and I wouldn't say I remember everything." He corrected, his eyes running over her figure, replaying the old scene in her head. "I do remember that day, though... I remember every word of that fight, I remember how hurt I was..." It seemed almost painful to think back on the worse moments of their relationship. "I remember how much I hated you... how much I hated being in love you."
Riley despised herself for bringing it up. Her head reached up to brush his cheek. "God, I put you through so much... you didn't deserve any of that, why did you ever marry me-"
"I told you, I don't care." His arm going around her waist to pull her close to him. "I know you only put me through that because you were scared, you loved me and you were too afraid you'd lose me. But now you know I'm not going anywhere. We're together now and nothing is going to pull us apart again. And that's a promise I know I can keep."
She beamed at him. Maybe it was his imagination, but despite the constant disappointment during this week, he could not remember a time before they were married that she looked so happy. She pressed a light kiss to him, just wanting to forget where they were and devour his lips. "Speaking of promises.. I've been thinking about tonight."
"Really?" He asked, amused. "Like what?"
"Well..." She grinned, seeming so innocent and sinful at the same time. "While I was shopping the other day, I bought everything we need for a hot, relaxing bubble bath. I know how much you like those."
"Hmm," he murmured, thinking a moment. "You know, it's not the bath I like, it's the wet, naked girl inside it."
She giggled again, leaning closer. "You do look awfully cute in bubbles. I was thinking we'd start with dinner..." She pecked him a kiss, "And then we'll have a long soak in the tub before we have some... dessert."
"By dessert, I don't think you mean cheesecake and ice cream." Reid's arms held her against, her feet barely steadied on the ground, her weight supported by his.
"No... but there may be strawberries and chocolate sauce involved." At last, she pulled him into a long kiss. Barely a moment passed before the elevator sounded, the doors sliding open. Neither noticed nor cared, lost in their own world once again.
"Pardon me," an elderly man in a lab coat grumbled, startling the newlyweds, "I don't mean to interrupt, but I don't believe the hospital lift is the proper place for a snog."
"No, sir, it's not." Reid said, avoiding his eyes as he whipped his mouth. Riley trembled next to him, trying to hide her giggles. "We apologize, we'll be on our way."
Grabbing Riley's hand, he pulled her passed the doctor quickly and hurried down the floor. Once out of ear shot, Riley let her laughter go, and Reid couldn't help but smile with her.
But their happiness faded almost as fast as it came, soon remembering why they were here. Room 523 came into view as they went down another corridor. As they approached, the door opened and a young woman stepped out. Her strawberry blonde hair fitted in a bun on her head and her bright green eyes behind a pair of owl frames. She shielded herself from the cold, wrapping her grey cardigan as close to her body as possible.
Both were confused, knowing their victim wouldn't be well enough to be up and around yet. "Excuse me, we were told this is is Sarah Neilson's room."
She seemed confused as to why they were questioning her, eyeing them with caution. But at last she nodded, speaking with a soft Irish accent. "Sarah's my older sister, my name is Bridget Murphy."
"Hello, Miss Murphy." Reid said, offering his hand. "I'm Dr. Spencer Reid, this is my wife, Riley. We're assisting Scotland Yard on your sister's case and we're here to question her."
"It's Mrs. Murphy, I'm a widow." She corrected. She sounded so tired. "And I'm afraid my sister can't say much because of her injuries, she's rather groggy from the dose of drugs she was given. Not to mention incredibly traumatize by the whole ordeal. I'm not sure she'll be up for this."
"Perhaps, you can help us in the questioning," Riley suggested. It was a psychological technique to get on her good side. "You know your sister well, you may be able to help us fill in any blanks. Your very presence could help us gain your sister's trust."
"Normally we'd wait until your sister is healthy enough, but we don't have time to spare." Reid explained. "We need to speak with her."
The only hope they had was if Bridget agreed. They couldn't go back and get a warrant to talk to Mrs. Neilson, even if they were home. But it seemed their words of sympathy were enough for her. Bridget nodded, opening the door again to allow them inside.
It was darker inside the hospital room, with most of the lights turned down so as to allow the young woman to sleep. Like her sister, she had long strawberry blonde hair, long and curly. She had delicate features and an elegant figure. Reid wouldn't have been surprised to learn she was a model or actress of some kind. Her neck was wrapped in a bandage, her skin sickly pale as her body tried to recover from such a loss of blood.
Bridget went to one side of the bed while Reid and Riley stood on the other. "She's been drifting in and out of sleep for the last hour, if she won't stay awake, I won't force her."
"Understood," Reid replied.
"Sarah," she whispered softly, shaking her sister a bit. "Sarah... you need to wake up, Sweetie."
After a minute of jostling, Sarah gave a harsh gurgle, slowly opening her eyes. Her pupils were indeed dilated; a result of the drugs. She glanced to her right, spotting the visitors in the room. Her breathing became a little faster, nervous and scared. She tried to speak, but all they heard was the start of a whisper.
"It's alright, Sarah." Bridget explained. She sat on the edge of her bed, gripping her hand. "They're with Scotland Yard, they want to talk to you about what happened."
"Mrs. Neilson," Reid began. "We're very sorry for both your loss and what you had to endure. We're doing everything we can to catch the man who did this to you. My name is Spencer Reid, and this is my wife, Riley."
Her eyes softened as she learned that, nodding, "Thank you..." she hissed. "I... I'm not..."
Talking was a real chore for her and Riley grabbed her other hand. "Try not to talk anymore than you have to." She said softly. "Your sister will try to explain anything she can, we just need to ask you a few questions."
Reid spoke immediately, not wanting to draw this out for the poor woman. "Mrs. Neilson, do you know the man who attacked you?"
An easy answer; Sarah shook her head. Tears were already forming in her eyes. "Did you let your attacker into your hotel room?"
Again, she shook her head. At least that meant he broke in on every attack, most likely. "Where had your husband gone, Mrs. Neilson? Do you know?"
She took several deep breaths, trying to speak. "Mobile," was all she could utter.
"He got a ring on his mobile?" Bridget asked, and Sarah nodded.
"Do you know from who?" Riley wondered.
Sarah's eyes traveled up to Bridget, and instantly her little sister looked guilty. "It was from me... I work... worked, for Harris. He's a professor at Dublin University, I'm in the middle of graduate school and Harris hired me as an assistant. I was... having trouble with his computer system and I didn't want to lose his files. He was about to get published, I couldn't let him lose his work."
"Mrs. Murphy, this is not your fault." Reid assured. "If the unsub hadn't attacked while you were on the phone with him, he would have found another time."
"Do you know how you were drugged, Mrs. Neilson?" Riley wondered. "Did your attacker force anything down your throat? Feed you anything?"
She shook her head again. "What did you do while your husband was talking to your sister?" Reid asked.
Another moment, and Sarah answered, "T... t..."
"Tea?" Riley wondered. "You had a cup of tea?"
She nodded, letting out a relieved breath. "Did you put anything unusual into the tea?" Reid wondered.
Again, she shook her head. "She only puts sugar in her tea, she wouldn't put something odd in it. Why are you asking this? What purpose does this serve?" Bridget demanded. She was getting quickly annoyed with this interrogation.
Riley took a glance at Reid. There was still no sign as to how the drugs were getting into the victims' bodies. "And you had fallen asleep before your husband returned?"
Sarah was about to nod as Bridget exclaimed, "I don't see the reason for all these questions. She doesn't know anything about her killer. And what qualifications do you have to be working on this? How do we know you're not friends with the horrible bloke who did this to my poor sister."
She stroked her sister's hand in worry as Reid began to explain. "My wife and I work for the Federal Bureau of Investigation back in America. I'm a profiler, my team and I travel all over our country investigating serial crimes just like this. My wife is a psychiatrist with the Bureau, she's here because of her expertise with human psychology, especially with troubled victims."
"And Scotland Yard asked for you to come all the way across the pond to help on this?" Bridget sounded a bit amazed.
"No," Riley corrected. "We were already in London when we learned about the case. My husband's team joined us and we've been working with the inspectors."
That must have seemed very odd to both the girls. "Why were you here in the first place?" Bridget asked. Sarah waited with interest, wanting to know the answer as well.
Reid cleared his throat apprehensively, as Riley carefully replied, "We're on our honeymoon."
Sarah gave the hiss of a gasp, looking at the ceiling with sad eyes. There was no stopping the tears now, seeing this newlywed couple before and knowing she lost the person she loved most in the world. Bridget grasped her one hand tighter, brushing aside some of her reddish hair from her temple. Riley clung to her other hand, grateful to feel Reid's land on her shoulder.
With permission, Reid stayed behind to quickly examine Mrs. Neilson's injuries. There was a lot he could tell about the killer just from the slice alone. Riley kept Bridget company in the hall, trying to see if there was more she could learn about the two victims.
"You and your sister must be close." Riley noted. "You flew all the way from Dublin at a moment's notice to be with her."
"Wouldn't you if your sister was almost killed?" She asked, amazed.
"I wouldn't know, I don't have any siblings." She explained. "In fact... Spencer's really the only family I have."
"Oh," Bridget looked at her with both adoration and envy. "It's so sweet, seeing two people in love like you... I miss that."
Riley understood, pitying her the same as she had for her sister. "I'm sorry... how long since your husband passed?"
"Almost two years." She said. "We weren't married very long... oh, but he was my world. The kind of love you only get once, you know. Well... of course you know."
The smile that spread on her face couldn't be helped. "Yeah... I do."
She folded her arms as she stared Riley up and down, seeming to study her. She seemed to carry such wisdom in her eyes. Like she'd seen and experienced a lot more than she should have in her young life, and none of it good.
"You two seem very happy, I can tell just by how you act with each other that your very much in love." Bridget assumed.
"Well, this hasn't exactly been a dream honeymoon, but I'm happy... and I think Spencer's happy." Riley gave a shrug.
Her smile was sad, like she were trying to be happy for the couple. "Mrs. Reid, I know I'm a bit younger than you. Maybe I don't have the right, but... you should take my advice." Tears formed in her eyes as she looked at the ceiling. "You have no idea how quickly the one you love can be taken away from you. If I had known that minute was going to be the last with my husband..." She brushed a tear away and met her eyes again. "Just... don't take him for granted. Because you never know when the last time you're together... will be the last time."
Riley was both touched and frightened by her words of wisdom. She always feared when Reid went out of town that he wasn't going to come back to her. She had thought he was dead once and had gone through three weeks of hell until she had him back. Riley ignored the shudder on her spine as she stepped forward, asking tentatively. "How did your husband die, Mrs. Murphy? If you don't mind my asking."
"An accident." She responded. "It was very sudden... one moment he was here... and the next..." Her bright green eyes looked up to meet her brown ones, "he was gone."
The door at last opened and Reid stepped out. "Thank you, Mrs. Murphy. Sarah's resting again. If your sister thinks of anything else, or if you need anything, please give us a call at Scotland Yard."
"As soon as she's a bit more lucid, I'll let you speak to her again. Maybe there's something she can't tell us at the moment." Bridget noted.
"Thank you," Reid replied. Bridget stepped into the room, the door closing them out in the corridor once more. Reid looked to Riley, giving a small smile. "Hey, you know we have some time. You want to grab some lunch before we-"
His words were cut off as Riley took him by surprise. She rushed forward, throwing her arms around him. Her one hand cradled the back of his head as her lips pressed to the spot below his ear. "I love you," she whispered.
Reid's arms went around her waist, holding her just as tight. "I love you, too." He said, a little surprised. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah," She said as she pulled away, her eyes wide and innocent. "I'm just... I'm sorry about last night. I'm sorry I let my temper get he best of me. You deserve better than that and I love you. No matter what happens on this trip and for the rest our lives, you mean everything to me. If I ever take you for granted... I need you to know I love you."
"I don't know everything," Reid explained. "Despite what most of my friends think, there is a lot I don't know... but I do know that. And I love you."
She let out a soft sigh, smiling. "You said something about lunch?" She said as she pulled away, taking his hand. "I'm starting to get hungry."
It was typical that when Riley became so vulnerable, the moment was gone almost as quick as it came. But it didn't change how she felt. Reid felt like he was walking on air, leading her to the elevator once again. It wasn't much, but at least they could have a little time, just the two of them.