He wasn't so sure about this tuxedo. He always felt so out of place when he wore one, and now he was supposed to stand up in front of his friends and family and several prominent members of the FBI looking like some outdated figurine.
"I hate to say it," Morgan mentioned, leaning against the wall with his arms folded, "but you clean up nice, kid."
"I guess." He grumbled, trying to smooth out the wrinkles as he stood before the mirror. His one hand went up to his lengthy chestnut tendrils. "Maybe I should have gotten a hair cut."
"Reid, you don't need to be so worried." Hotch mentioned, relaxing on one of the couches. He, at least, got to wear a less formal suit. "It's a wedding, people are typically more focused on the bride. The only person who's really going to be concerned with how you look is already in love with you."
"I guess that's true," He whined slightly. Giving up on his appearance, he went to take the seat on the sofa across from Hotch. "I'd rather have her opinion, though. It's stupid I can't see her."
"It's tradition, Reid." Morgan mentioned, going to check his own appearance in the mirror. "You can't see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding, it's bad luck."
"You know, Morgan, Riley and I have enough bad luck without giving in to stupid superstitions." He snapped, taking both the men in the room by surprise.
As the shock of his outburst settled, Hotch asked, "Reid, are you alright?"
He couldn't sit here, his nerves were getting to him. Reid stood up and began to pace the room. "Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm just... tense, I guess. I don't know why."
Hotch replied. "If you didn't, Reid, there would be something wrong."
"It's not easy to feel normal in this monkey suit, anyway." Morgan added as he adjusted his tie. "Why do they call it a monkey suit, anyway?"
"Traditionally, in the 1800s, this was the typical outfit of organ grinder monkeys." Reid explained without missing a beat.
Morgan looked his shoulder at Hotch who shrugged. "You had to ask."
With a roll of his eyes, Morgan replied. "Obviously he can't be that terrified."
"Twenty minutes, Reid," Hotch assured, "You just have twenty more minutes and then you can head down to the ceremony, so just try to relax."
Taking a deep breathe, Reid tried to lower his blood pressure. Something must be wrong with him if he felt this much anxiety. What was there to be nervous about, that he would embarrass himself and Riley? They'd been through the rehearsal, he knew his vows by heart, he didn't have a doubt in his mind he wanted to marry her, he couldn't fathom why he should be so antsy. He was grateful Riley didn't know he was feeling this way... she'd probably feel ashamed and start second guessing the whole thing.
A knock on the door surprised them. "Come in," Hotch called, allowing their visitor to enter. At once, the door opened and JJ stepped in, wearing a long dark red dress and her blonde hair pulled back.
"Hey," She said smiling, "Is Will here, I found his cufflinks."
"He took Henry to the restroom. Don't worry, Rossi's watching Joey." Hotch explained.
"Great, who's watching Rossi?" JJ joked. "Can you guys give these to Will when he gets back?"
"No problem," Morgan said, accepting the two gold pieces from her.
JJ looked Morgan over and nodded with approval. "Wow," She said, turning to Reid. "You boys look really great."
"Thanks," Reid muttered, blushing a little bit. "Um... how's Riley?"
"She's just about ready and she looks beautiful." JJ revealed. "She's kind of anxious, though. She can't sit still and she keeps knocking things over. But don't worry, we're taking care of her."
Just hearing that, he forgot about his stomach churning nerves. Reid breathed much more easily and his throat didn't feel quite so dry. If he needed anymore proof that he was supposed to be with this woman, he just found it.
"See, Reid, looks like you're not the only one." Morgan noted.
"Well, Riley keeps assuring us that anxiety is a natural emotional response when a person is about to make a major lifestyle change, and if she didn't feel this way, there would be something mentally wrong." JJ added with a slight roll of her eyes.
Morgan looked to the the young groom with a such a serious expression. "Reid, don't ever let her go. There will never be another woman who relates to you like that."
"Believe me," Reid shook his head. He couldn't stop smiling. "I know."
"It won't be long now," JJ assured, stepping forward to embrace her friend. "If I don't get to say it later... I'm so happy for you, Spence."
"Thanks, JJ," He replied, hugging her warmly.
As he began to pull away, JJ gripped his arms to keep him close. Standing on the tiptoes of her heels, she leaned into his ear. "Just wait until you see her," She whispered.
She flashed him a significant smile and pulled away. "I'd better get back." She said, heading to door.
"I'll walk with you, it's about time I get over there." Hotch said, standing up. "Morgan, I trust you'll get him down to the hall in one piece?"
"I haven't killed him yet, I think I can last another twenty minutes." He agreed. The two stepped out of the room, the door closing softly. Looking up, Morgan looked to Reid again. "Seriously, though, kid, are you okay? Are you going to make it through this?"
"Oh, yeah... definitely." He said with certainty. He may have been terrified of appearing as a fool in front of everyone he knew, but it didn't matter. For her... he could do anything.
"Dr. Reid," A raspy voice called as Reid felt himself shaking. "Dr. Reid... you need to stay... awake."
Blinking rapidly, Reid pulled himself from the half sleep he found himself in. He must have drifted off by accident. It was getting harder and harder to keep conscious. He was so exhausted and dizzy. Even if he could keep from falling asleep, he wasn't sure he'd have the strength to get both he and Sarah to safety. And that was if the opportunity arrived.
"Sorry," He muttered. He went to rub the exhaustion out of his eyes, but that only made his head hurt more. All he wanted was to fall back into that dream and relive the greatest day of his life again, over and over for eternity.
Sarah inched herself closer, her bare legs right against the icy concrete floor. "How are we going... to get out of here?"
"I don't know," Reid said again. "Bridget doesn't seem to be giving us much freedom... I don't know what she's waiting for, but she must have a reason why she's dragging this out." He glanced around, but there wasn't a sign of their captor anywhere. "Where is she?"
"Over there," She pointed. "I can't see what she's doing."
Reid thought for a moment. Bridget hadn't noticed the stack of crates he created below the hatch, over on the fall wall close to the corner. The handle looked old and rusty, it might not even open. But if it did... Reid was confident he could reach it.
What they needed was for her to leave again. Even if it was just for ten minutes. That should give him enough time to get them out, both of them. The problem was convincing her to step out. Obviously Bridget wasn't just going to grant them that request. There had to be a specific reason for her to leave... and what better reason was there than an emergency?
"I think, if one of us was hurt..." Reid said slowly,l the idea inching into his mind. He thought his brain was literally going to erupt in his skull and ooze out his ear if he kept thinking so much. "Then... she'd be forced to get some kind of medical help or supplies."
"But you are physically hurt." Sarah whispered. Her hand reached up to brush against his bruise gently. Reid winced. Even at the slightest touch, it was unbearable. "And trust me... it's getting worse."
"That's the thing," He continued. "If I'm hurt, Bridget's not going to care. She's going to kill me anyway, anything short of a premature death is not going to disrupt her plans. And that only leaves us... one option."
It took a few moments for Sarah to realize what he meant. The truth began to sink in and Sarah backed away from him slightly. "You want to injure... me?"
"I can't force you to do it." Reid said at once. "I would never dream of putting an innocent person through that kind of pain or using her as bait... but we're out of options. We just need her to disappear for a little while, just enough for us to get out of that hatch up there."
He pointed to the red, rusted door on the ceiling. The handle dangled tantilizingly above them. She stared at it for a long time, her eyes glistening a bit. "Are you certain... there's no other way?"
"Only the door Bridget goes in and out of, and we can't disappear fast enough out there. We're both sick, she'll take us down and drag us back here easily. Maybe there's another door somewhere down here, but I didn't see one and we won't have time to look."
Again, Sarah hesitated. The fear of pain was standing in their way of freedom. Reid lurched forward, grabbing her hand. "I promise, when we get out of here, I will get you back to a hospital. Everything will be fine. But we can't just sit here and wait and hope we'll be saved. You're going to have a baby, I have a wife. We both have reasons to live... just being alive is a reason to live. And that's why we can't give up yet. Please, Sarah... will you do this?"
He watched as Sarah's delicate hand landed on her stomach, stroking it softly. She'd already lost her husband. This baby was all she had left and it was completely dependent on her. After a moment, she looked up and met his eyes. "What are we going to do?"
Quickly, Reid scanned the area. "Wait here," he said, and got on his feet. Shakily, he headed over to the supply shelves.
Listening carefully, he waited for some sign Bridget was about to return to the group. The hustle and bustle of her work echoed in the huge space, giving Reid plenty of knowledge of her whereabouts. But, by the same rule, if he made too much noise, she would hear and come over to see. He didn't know what she'd do, but he couldn't risk her finding out regardless. Carefully, he began looking over the boxes and containers on the shelves, looking for a specific instrument.
There were several jugs of formaldehyde, which he eased aside with caution. The last thing he needed was for one of those to break. None of the packages he looked over were any help: evidence bags, rubber gloves, trays and pans for varying autopsy work. Nothing much for bandaging and medical treatment. Excellent, it was exactly what he was hoping for.
The first two shelves gave him nothing. Luckily, Bridget was still unwise to their activities and Reid kept searching. He carefully squatted to look at the bottom shelf. The change in height altered the pressure on his head. He almost vomitted right there, gripping the metal of the structure to keep him steady. The wave of nausea lingered for long, agonizing moment until it finally passed. He continued his search... and at last, there it was.
With ginger fingers, Reid took alarge tupperware box and attempted to open it. It gave a snap as the pressure released itself from lid to tub and he froze. He listened, waiting. Silence rang throughout the entire basement for what seemed like an hour. But at last, Bridget, satisfied her victims were behaving, went on with her mission. With a sigh of relief, Reid set aside the lid and smiled at the contents inside. Just as he suspected.
Thousands of different metal instruments shined in the flourescent lights. Each one holding a different purpose for the autopsy process. Delicately, he reached into the tools and quietly searched through each one, soon spotting a scalpel. His hand held it cautiously and set the rest of the tub aside.
Sarah's eyes looked apprehensively at the instrument in his hand as he hurried back over. "Don't worry," He said, though he knew she'd find no comfort in his words. "I'm just going to cut your leg a little. It won't be too deep."
Her breathing got rather rapid and harsh. It must have been sore on her injured throat. Reid's free hand rested on her red hair, stroking it gently down the side of her face. "Remember who you're doing this for."
Swallowing her fear, Sarah nodded. Reid listened, hoping Bridget still had a bit of work to do over in her section. "Lie down," He ordered.
Doing as she was told, Bridget moved to pile of blankets. Reid couldn't risk blood appearing on those sheets. It would give them away. Quickly, he removed his sweater vest and adjusted it under the targeted leg.
A second thought struck him and Reid pulled off his tie as well. "Bite down on this." He ordered, putting it between her teeth.
"Now, I know you can't make much noise." He said as she situated herself. He could feel his heart rate speed up, unwilling to do this. "But you still have to try to be as quiet as you can. Okay?"
Tears were welling in her eyes, but Sarah nodded. Reid could feel his own tears forming, looking at the leg he intended to strike. It was elegant and slender. Not quite as alluring as Rileys, but still smooth and unscarred. She was going to carry this memory forever... all because of him. Reid almost backed out at that moment.
He met Sarah's eyes again, looking to him with determination. She gave another nod and Reid knew he had to be strong if only for her. A tear leaked out as he positioned the scalpel right against her flesh.
"I'm sorry," He whispered. And at that, he pressed down.
She kept tossing and turning. It didn't matter how often Reid was out of town, Riley could never get used to sleeping alone. Besides, her stomach felt very unsettled from her growing nerves, knowing that this time tomorrow she was going to be a married woman.
After midnight, she managed to fall into a light sleep. It helped moving to his side of the bed, breathing in the scent infused in his pillow. It was just one night. Tomorrow, she'd be back in his arms... and they would be together for the rest of their lives.
She wasn't sure how long she was asleep before she was awaken by her phone. Riley moaned a bit, trying to rise herself awake. Her cell phone was buzzing on her bedside table. By the alarm clock, she could see it was almost five.
Reaching into the darkness, Riley grabbed her phone, flipping it open without even bothering to check the ID. "Hello?" She groggily mumbled.
"Hello, ma'am, you don't know me, but I was wondering if perhaps you'd like to marry me today." The familiar voice said on the other end.
Riley rested her head against her pillow, closing her eyes as she smiled. "Hmm, I don't know... I'm supposed to marry this other guy today... but I'm not so sure. He's kind of know-it-all. Just because he has an IQ of 187, he thinks he's some kind of genius or something."
"How awful, a beautiful woman like you shouldn't be stuck with someone like that." He teased and she was sure he was smiling. "You should marry me instead."
"No thanks," She said softly, "I have to marry him. I love him too much and I can't live without him."
There was a long pause on the other end. "Good to know." He replied.
She uttered a light chuckle, rolling onto her side. "So what are you doing up this early, Brainiac?"
"I can't sleep." Reid answered. "Morgan's couch is too lumpy... and I miss you."
"I miss you, too." Riley said. "It's silly, we've only been apart for two days and I think I miss you more than when you're on a case for a week. I don't get it."
"It's the anticipation." He explained. "Awaiting a big event can increase separation anxiety between two people."
She couldn't help but giggle. "See, that's why I'm marrying you. You help me to understand human psychology so much better then med school ever did."
"I hope that's not the only reason." He stated.
"Of course not... there are a thousand reasons... and when you add them all up, it means we're meant to be together."
Reid wondered. They had never actually discussed this subject. "Do you really believe in Fate?"
"I didn't before you." Riley answered, so seriously and clearly, it couldn't be denied. "After everything we've been, everything we've endured, we're still here and we're together. No matter what happened, we always found our way back to each other... you don't think some outside force has something to do with it?"
"Well, if there is, I'm grateful it brought me to you." He said. "Just think, in twelve hours... we're going to be husband and wife."
Her smile turned so bright at that, she was certain her fiance could hear it on the other end. "I can't wait. I'm going to make you so happy, Spencer Reid."
"You already do, Riley Parker," He assured. "I'll let you go back to sleep. You need your rest... I suspect you're not going to get much tonight."
"I certainly hope so." Riley smiled. "I love you."
"I love you, too. I'll see you this afternoon."
"See you then," She muttered and slowly hung up the phone. Riley set it back on her table and snuggled under her covers again. It was little time before she drifted off into a much more restful sleep.
Riley wasn't saying anything. All she could do was stare at that map of London, trying to ignore how badly her hands were shaking. She was desperate for her phone to ring, for someone to give her news that Spencer was alive. She wanted to hear his voice, to feel his long arms wrap around her from behind and enclose her like he was protecting her from the all the evil in the world.
She couldn't stop thinking about their phone conversation the morning of the wedding. He must have been thinking of it, too, when he gave that message... that he would always find his way back to her. Maybe there wasn't such a thing as Fate, and they had just been lucky all the times before. They got to have one perfect day together and now it was over... and they were never supposed to have happiness again.
"Are you okay, Riley?" Garcia wondered, breaking the silence.
She rolled her eyes. "No... I am not all right. That's a stupid question!"
Both the girls were very taken aback by her outburst. Riley regretted it as soon as it came out. She leaned forward, resting her brow against her palms. "I'm sorry... I just want my husband back."
"I'm sure we'll hear something soon." JJ assured, patting her arm.
She sat back up again, folding her arms. "I can't stand just sitting here... waiting. I feel like we should be doing something, that we should be out there looking for him!"
"There's nothing we can do, Sweetie." Garcia cried. "Believe us, we've been through this before, including with Reid. I think this is the third time he's gone missing... and it sucks big time... but there's nothing else we can do."
JJ added. "I deal with so many families who feel the same way you do. They want to get into a car and drive and search until they've lost every once of energy because they feel like they don't care otherwise. But that doesn't do any good. The team is going to find them, you know they're the best."
"I know..." She shook her head. "I just feel so useless. When I was missing, Spencer was working, he was out there looking for me. It makes me feel like I don't love him as much."
She closed her eyes as a fresh wave of tears claimed her. Her one hand came up to shield her eyes. Garcia reached over to put her arm around her, comforting the poor young bride.
All other sounds were extinguished as JJ's cell phone began to buzz. Both Garcia and Riley looked over in terror, staring at the device. Keeping calm, JJ picked up the phone and lifted it to read the name.
"It's Hotch," She cried, standing up. "I'm going to take this in the other room, I'll be right back."
Riley didn't protest, more tears streaming down her cheeks. She felt Garcia take her hand and she clutched it in a vice grip, praying to whatever force in the universe was listening that the call was good news.
Sarah's brow was covered in sweat and she was sniffling back some tears. Reid looked sorrowfully at the work he'd done, the blood seeping from the gash on her leg. He'd never been so disgusted with himself. How so many people in the world could actually take pleasure in this was beyond him.
"Are you okay?" He whispered, catching her eye.
Sarah nodded, taking a deep breath. "It's not... so bad..."
"We don't have much time, we need to move." Reid said. He grabbed his sweater and wrapped the scalpel in it, setting it out of sight. Once it was safe, he reached over and carefully lifted Sarah into his arms.
He paused for a moment as this lifting her brought a new rush of nausea. He gagged for a moment, fighting the forces back into his stomach.
"Are you all right?" Sarah hissed.
It took a second or two to get back on solid ground. "I'm fine," He avowed and with that carried her over, keeping a close eye for Bridget.
"What... are you... doing?" She asked. With the new cut on her leg, she was losing more and more energy. Reid just hoped she had enough left in her to climb out of here.
At the end of the room, Reid spotted the door. Several sets of crates sat around more shelves. Perfect. Bringing her over, Reid gently lay Sarah onto the floor. "Lay on your side." He ordered, easing her out of his arms. "Whatever I say, just play along."
Sarah nodded again. Before Reid could step away again, she grabbed his wrist. Her eyes were so frightened; she was shivering and Reid suspected it wasn't just from the cold. He rested his hand on her icy fingers.
"This will work." He whispered with confidence. He may have been doubtful, but she didn't need to know that. "I promise... I'm going to get you out of here."
One thing Reid could never figure out was his ability to appeal to the victims, especially women and children. He was kind and gentle, people had a tendecy to trust in him. Sarah was not immune to his charms, either, and felt rejuvenated by his words.
"Okay," Reid stood up, checking one more time to make sure they were alone. The coast was clear, and Reid hurried to adjust the crates. Sarah watched with interest as he arranged them just so.
This was it, it was now or never. If Reid couldn't get them out... they never would. Gathering his composure he took one more breath and struck.
A loud crash sounded through the basement. Without missing a beat, Reid threw himself to the floor next to Sarah. He cringed at the throbbing pain in his head, but with any luck he and Sarah would be on their way to safety within a few minutes. He leaned against his arm, forcing his drowsy eyes to stay open as Bridget hurried to the scene.
"What the bloody hell is going on here!" She cried, rushing to the couple on the floor. "What on Earth do you think you're doing!"
"Nothing," Reid grumbled as she tried to pull him up. He wrenched himself away from her grip, not wanting her grubby paws to touch him.
Bridget scowled at him before looking up to the end of the room. Just twenty feet away stood the door. She gasped, piecing the scene together.
"You were trying to escape, weren't you?" She snarled. "You slimey little git, I can't believe you!"
"You have no right to keep us here, Bridget." Reid grumbled as he struggled to pull himself into a seated position. "We're hurt, we're sick, we have reasons to live and so do you."
"I have nothing to live for!" She screeched, going to help Sarah. "Don't you see, Dr. Reid, I have to do this. I can't live with this pain anymore. I should have done this all along... if I knew then what I knew now..." She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I suppose I'll have to keep my eyes on both of you for the rest of the night!"
As she pulled Sarah to her feet, the girl moaned from the pain, stumbling a bit. She clutched onto her sister to remain upright. "What's wrong, Sarah?" Bridget asked, looking to her with worry.
"My... leg..." she breathed, wincing again from the pain.
Curious, Bridget looked down. For a second time she gasped, spotting the damage. "Oh, my..." She exclaimed, looking it over. "It looks rather deep."
Reid felt a great twinge of guilt at that. If only there had been another way. Bridget's cold eyes came up, bringing Reid into her deadly sights. "You did this to her! You were so determined to go back to your life and woman, neither of which you deserve, and in the process, you hurt my sister."
"Then I guess you and I have something in common." He quipped.
With a glare, she looked back at the leg. "Oh, that does look awful. We best clean and wrap that so you don't catch an infection. I suppose I can cut up one of the sheets."
"That's not a proper bandage, Bridget." Reid at last managed to get on his feet, standing up straight. "She needs disinfectant and gauze and a bandage wrap. You need to get those things for her."
"And give you another chance to escape?" She flashed a pair of dangerous green eyes at her.
"I don't have any energy in me to escape again." Reid mumbled, closing his eyes as another shot of pain washed over his skull. "If you don't believe me, then fine, lock the door."
She considered that, looking from Reid to the door and back several times. "There is no other way out of here... but I still don't know."
"If you love your sister and you want her to live, this is the least you can do." He informed, attempting to get under her skin.
She glared at him again. "I almost felt sorry before that I had to kill you... now I'm going to enjoy watching you hang."
Reid felt a shudder at that, but didn't give her the satisfaction by letting her see. "Very well, I'll get the supplies. But you're to stay over there in your area and be there when I get back or you're going to be sorry."
It perplexed him to think what worse she could do to them, but Reid chose not to ask. The sooner she left, they sooner they could climb out.
"Thank you... Bridget..." Sarah exhaled, still leaning on her.
Bridget leaned over and kissed her sister on the forehead. She guided Sarah into Reid's arms, "Take her back to her bed. I'll be back in fifteen minutes."
They agreed and began their unsteady journey over to the makeshift bed. Bridget wouldn't take her eyes off them until she saw them settle down. Exhausted, Reid leaned his head against the crates again, closing his eyes, willing himself to stay away. Just a little bit longer, a little longer and they were free.
"Don't try anything." She demanded, and headed to the door.
It opened and brought in a flood of light again. Within a few moments, it closed and the lock sounded. She must have some kind of key.
Reid opened his eyes to see Sarah's bright eyes smiling at him. "Did I do alright?"
"Sarah, you were absolutely brilliant." He grinned, fighting himself to get back to his feet. "Now, we don't have much time. Let's get out of here."