(Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or its characters.)
Thank you for HaileySnowFlake, laily spenstar, Diana, Ash59, Daisyangel, Rookblonkorules, Guest, Guest and MaidenMoonshine for reviewing
HaileySnowFlake- thanks for reviewing.
Diana- all will be revealed soon, I'm glad you're enjoying the characterisations. Thanks for leaving a review.
Ash59- I'm glad you think the same, I can't wait for season 15... actually, I think I can because then it'll be closer to it finishing :( thanks for reviewing.
Guest- deaged Hotch? Well, I know for a fact purplecat has written a deaged Hotch fic. I had something similar in mind but not along those exact lines and not for a while. Thank you for reviewing
Guest- thanks for reviewing, and I might have to disappoint you.
MaidenMoonshine- thanks for reviewing. That's what I think, he just needs another chance.
This is a big chapter and a lot of work has been put into it so please just take a second to leave a review when you're finished telling me what you thought. Thank you.
Sorry, this was a day off schedule. I have a good reason, I have a presentation tomorrow and I am terrified of presenting in front of people so I've been woking on that and practicing it... I cannot wait till tomorrow afternoon when its over.
Anyway, thanks for reading and reviewing the last chapter, enjoy this one... or not ;)
Previously:
"Awe you suwe I tan't just 'tay in Gawcia's office? Stwauss wouldn't know."
"No, buddy."
"What about youws?"
"No."
"Wossi's?"
"Spencer."
JJ fished Spencer from beneath his covers and he groaned.
"S'eeping," he mumbled, his eyes still drilled shut.
"Come on, Spence, we have to get ready to go. We need to do your teeth, have breakfast, change..."
"Tan't I jut wead in bed 'til I'm mowe awate?" Spencer asked, squinting against the bright white light in the bathroom as JJ sat him on the counter.
"You won't want to leave."
She handed Spencer his toothbrush and took up her own. Spencer gave his brush a plaintive glare before sticking it in his mouth.
He paused for a moment as he scrubbed his bottom teeth before a thought hit him and he gazed up at JJ.
"I don't want to go to nuwsewy!" he cried suddenly, foam dripping past his lips. JJ spat and rinsed her mouth out before releasing a sigh.
"I know, Spence, but we can't leave you with Sean or Haley again; Garcia's working and Strauss wants you out of the office."
Spencer spat the minty foam haphazardly into the sink and he pouted at JJ.
"You have toothpaste on your cheek."
Spencer huffed grumpily but before he could wipe it off JJ was running a wet cloth over his cheeks. He made a face and glared at her when she was done.
"Come on," she said with a laugh. Spencer plodded after her, swinging his arms; a pout still on his lips.
They drove Spencer to nursery first, all three boys were sat in the back ready to go. Jack and Henry were talking about what they were going to be playing in gym class while Spencer sat with his fingers entwined like a spider caught in its own web. He glanced nervously up at the window. He didn't feel good. Maybe he could just tell Hotch he felt ill and then they wouldn't make him go. He pressed his teeth into his squishy gum and his eyebrows tilted upward and he looked over at Aaron.
"Um, daddy," he started quietly but suddenly the car stopped. Spencer whipped his head back toward the window and his eyebrows fell over his eyes.
"We're here. I'll go book him in. I'll be back in ten minutes," Aaron said, unbuckling.
"I'll unbuckle Spencer," Jack said, reaching over and pressing the red button on Spencer's car seat. Spencer just watched in uncomfortable silence as Hotch pulled his arms from the straps and lifted him out of his seat.
"Daddy," Spencer mumbled as he was set on his feet. Hotch reached down and pulled Spencer's bag from where it was lodged between the seat and the floor. He turned to Spencer and smiled softly.
"What's up, bud?"
Spencer fidgeted on the spot for a moment, his eyes flickering up at the building before they settled on Aaron.
"I got a tummy ache," Spencer said in a weak voice. He glanced down to his stomach and pressed his hand against it.
Hotch's happy expression rotated with his eyebrows into one of worry. He got down on one knee and looked into Spencer's nervous eyes.
"Sometimes people get butterflies," he said. He reached out and laid his much bigger hand on Spencer's skinny shoulder. The boy sucked in his bottom lip.
Hotch followed his gaze toward the nursery and he let out a sigh.
"You'll be fine, Spencer. I'm picking you up at three," he said quietly. He offered his hand out to Spencer's fidgeting one and slung his bag further onto his shoulder.
Spencer's eyebrows clenched together but he took Aaron's hand. Hotch scowled at the sweatiness of Spencer's palms.
"You'll be alright."
Spencer stared straight ahead at the daycare centre and the faint sound of children's squeals. He took a deep breath and held onto Aaron's hand a little tighter.
"That's them."
"Where?"
"Black SUV."
"What, there?"
"Yes."
"With that toddler getting-"
Scott huffed in exasperation and pulled the binoculars from Kieran.
"Yes!"
"Well... why don't we get him now?"
"From the nursery? Are you mad?"
Kieran frowned and looked over at Scott who was studying the scene through his own binoculars.
"We do it later when he is picked up," Scott explained slowly. He eyed Kieran's look of confusion. Kieran went to question him but Scott cut in.
"We do this as subtly as we can. Just listen to me and this will go ..." Scott paused and pursed his lips together his eyes narrowing on the toddler holding the man's hand as they walked through the doors. "Swimmingly," he concluded with a smirk.
Spencer sat in the reading circle but he wasn't listening. The woman reading had a soft voice, soothing his nerves as he glanced at the windows.
He finally stood up from the small group and wandered over to the low bookshelves. He felt the eyes of the workers on him as they watched over their different groups. Spencer pulled off a bright book, smiling at the vivid images and he just sat down in front of the bookcase. He didn't bother to find himself a spot, he wasn't expecting to stay very long.
He poured himself over the book, flicking through to look at the drawings then back to where he was.
Before he knew it he was replacing the book and finding a new one.
"I'm just off to pick Spencer up."
"Okay, hopefully, there won't be any new cases," JJ said and she winked at her boyfriend.
Hotch rolled his eyes. "Spencer wouldn't be happy if there was."
"I don't even want to imagine." JJ stood up from her desk and pressed a chaste kiss to Aaron's lips. "We'd have to buy him a lot of cookies to make up."
"He eats enough of those!"
"I eat loads of Cheetos, let us have our secret habits."
Aaron felt his eyes on the verge of rolling again but he set his expression straight and smiled.
"Let's hope we don't have any cases then."
"What are you going to do with that?" Kieran stared at the hand drill Scott pulled out of his bag. He raised it up and examined the drill bit.
"Do you think you could put a nice little hole in someone's fuel tank with this?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow in Kieran's general direction as he continued to fiddle with the drill.
Kieran frowned at the tool and shrugged his shoulder. "I could try."
"Good man." Scott lowered the drill before pressing it into Kieran's hands. "Because that's exactly what you're going to do when that SUV comes back."
"In the middle of the parking lot? I'll be seen."
"I wouldn't have chosen you to come with me if I didn't think you could do it. No-one is going to see you... If you're quick."
Scott smirked and leaned back into the headrest. Kieran glanced helplessly down at his hand and sighed. He gripped the drill and fell back into his own chair.
Aaron parked in front of daycare and slid out of the car.
He stepped inside to the sound of loud happy voices. He grinned and sent a glance around the play area at all the young kids hopping around and pulling toys out from tubs around the room. He saw Spencer sat reading a colourful book, his curious eyes scanning the bright illustrations. Aaron's smile widened and he made his way over to the reception desk.
"Hi, I'm here to pick up my son."
The woman looked up and smiled.
"Mr. Hotchner. I'll have Sandra get Spencer for you. He's been extremely good today. He got three stickers for helping clean up and for sharing."
Aaron chuckled. "I'm sure I'll be shown his stickers," he said with a hint of pride in his voice.
Spencer was brought out of the play area, his soft rabbit hanging from his one hand and he started hopping up and down excitedly when he saw Hotch.
He hurried over and Aaron pulled him into a hug. When he pulled back Spencer pointed to his chest where he had a purple star, a blue one and one with a big smiley face and the caption 'good job.'
"Loot, Daddy! I got stiters!"
Aaron gasped and put his hand on the back of Spencer's head.
"Wow! Were you a good boy today?"
"Uh huh! Tan we have ice tweam?!"
Aaron raised an eyebrow and the workers started to laugh.
"Please?"
Aaron smiled and ruffled Spencer's hair.
"Since you were such a good boy I suppose we could stop off for-"
"Yay!" Spencer cried and he grabbed Aaron's hand and started pulling him toward the door.
"Thanks for having him. Spencer, hold on! He's still booked in for next Wednesday right? Spencer!"
The receptionist nodded with a grin directed toward the small boy tugging his dad's arm.
"Yea, next week I have you down for Wednesday and Friday."
"Perfect. I better- alright, buddy, I'm coming! Thanks again."
JJ thumbed lazily through the files on Aaron's desk. She marveled at his neat handwriting, summarising each paragraph perfectly. She let her fingers run along the edge of the table before pausing at a photo of the boys. She felt a smile spread over her face as she traced the small faces in the photo.
"Knock, knock?"
JJ looked up suddenly to see Garcia stood in the doorway. Her lips tugged into a half smile and she motioned to a stack of files in her hand. JJ followed her motions and stared at the gaudy ring on Penelope's finger. The large smiling bear face glued to the ring tapped against the files.
"Where is it?" JJ asked, looking up from the ring.
"Illinois."
JJ clenched her teeth and let a hiss escape. "How bad?"
"Like wheels up in 15 bad. Come on."
Hotch strapped Spencer into his car seat and hopped into the front.
"Good day, Spencer?"
"It was alwight," mumbled Spencer before he looked out of the window.
"Let's go pick up the boys then we can go home."
"What about wowt? Don't you have to be dewe?" Spencer asked. Hotch turned the ignition and shrugged.
"It's running a little slow," he said as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. "Just paperwork."
Spencer huffed in his seat and folded his arms with an irked look upon his features. He loved paperwork. Hotch glanced up at the rearview mirror and grinned.
"I know. There will still be plenty left for you on Monday."
Aaron looked back at the road and a red flashing light in front of him caused a deep scowl to sink onto his brow. "Huh," he muttered. Spencer raised his chin up in the back to see what Aaron was frowning at.
"What is it?"
"My gas is almost out... I swear I had at least half a tank," Hotch said, reaching forward to tap at the glowing light. "Guess we'll have to make a quick stop."
As they pulled into the next gas station Spencer noticed a van following behind. He craned his neck around the thick seat padding of his chair and saw the van pause before turning into the gas station. He fumbled in his lap for his rabbit and pulled it up against his face as their car came to a halt.
"Hold on, buddy, I'll be five minutes."
Spencer stared back at the van, paranoia creeping up into his chest and making his breaths seem stunted. He turned to see Hotch exiting the car and he whined quietly.
"Tate me wid you," he said. Aaron looked back at him and saw the boy's nervousness.
"Alright. Let me just fill up then you can come in the store with me."
Spencer looked back at the van and saw a young man exit. He had stylish brown hair that looped around his ear, the front slicked back. He could hear Aaron filling up the car but he continued to watch the man. He went into the store after hesitating at the flower section.
Spencer jumped when Hotch opened his door.
"Come on."
He pulled Spencer out and balanced him on his hip while he maneuvered the door shut. Hotch smiled at Spencer who was clutching his rabbit and started toward the station.
When they got inside Aaron set Spencer on his feet and led him to one of the freezers.
"How about ice cream from here?"
Spencer was busy scanning the store for the guy he'd seen. Aaron clicked his fingers and Spencer flinched and looked up at him.
"Are you okay?"
"I-I'm... I'm fine, daddy," Spencer said. He strained to see what was in the freezer. "Ummmm..."
"You pick, I'm just going to check what chips they do. Your mummy is almost out of Cheetos."
"Uh..." Spencer trailed off when Hotch straightened and turned to the wide display of chips. It was only around a meter away so Spencer took a quick breath and leaned over the freezer again.
He found the perfect ice lolly, it was twisty and had several colours wrapping around its coils. He stood on his tiptoes and attempted to reach his short arm inside despite knowing how futile his attempt was. The measurements were just all wrong.
Just when he hoped his fingers would wrap around the chilly treat, a cold hand smacked against his mouth.
"Call Aaron."
"He's probably just picked Spencer up," JJ said as the team took their seats and started to rifle through their files. Garcia stood with the remote in her hand, a bloody picture on the display behind her.
Morgan paused in opening his file and he sighed, pulling out his phone. " I'll text him. We'll need him on this."
"He can leave Spencer with me," Garcia offered sheepishly but JJ shook her head.
"Haley or Sean will take Jack and Henry, Spence can go with them."
Rossi glanced up with one eye narrowed on the screen. "We might as well continue. We can brief Aaron on the jet."
"Spencer's not going to like this," muttered JJ as she opened her own file and started to pull out the paperwork.
"Okay... uh, you might wanna buckle up, folks, this one does not look easy... or nice... actually, they never look nice, but this is extra not nice. So, this is Sheryl Carden, found like this by her neighbour. Two gunshot wounds to the head, but not before three of her fingers were removed in ways I cannot imagine and her stomach was sliced open. We have four more victims with the same mutilations in the last eight weeks..."
Hotch pulled some of the flaming Cheetos off the shelf and grinned to himself. He loved watching JJ try to brave them. He certainly wouldn't partake in such burning of taste buds.
"Spencer, would mummy kill me if I got her the hot sort again?" Aaron asked as he flicked an eyebrow up at a plain bag. He picked it up. "Have you picked an ice cream?"
There was no answer and Aaron felt a coolness creep up his chest. He turned suddenly to where Spencer had been lent over the freezer but saw nothing. The lid of the freezer was open but no toddler stood on his tip toes trying to reach inside.
"Spencer?!"
Aaron dropped the Cheetos and hurried around the corner. Maybe he'd just wandered off. But Spencer wasn't in the next row of shelves or the one after that. Ignoring the confused glances of the man behind the counter, Aaron crashed through the glass door, knocking his shoulder painfully against the frame.
"Spencer!" Aaron yelled when he got outside. He looked to his left. His breath started coming out in desperately panicked jolts as he swung his head to the right. Around the corner of the building he saw something black disappear. He bowed down to his foot and relieved the ankle holster of its passenger before he staggered towards the side of the building.
As soon as he cleared the corner he raised his gun. There were two men. Both were dressed in youthful attire, skinny black jeans, and sweaters of their own individual colours. The two men were armed and the one had Spencer locked in his arm. The toddler looked desperately at Hotch as he tried clawing at the arm around his neck.
"Let him go," Aaron snarled.
"That's not going to happen," the dark-haired man said. Aaron's glare deepened at the distinctly British twang to his voice. "Kieran."
The other man lifted a small handgun from his pocket and pressed the barrel to Spencer's temple. The boy whimpered and his eyes met with Aaron's.
"Drop your weapon, Aaron."
Aaron faltered for a moment at the mention of his name. He looked between the one man's gun pointed at him and the man named Kieran's gun, which was pressed painfully to his son's head.
"We will do it."
Aaron raised his hands and slowly bent close to the floor.
"Drop it I said."
Aaron dropped the gun and straightened back up.
The leader smiled. "Kick it over." Aaron followed the instruction and kept his hands raised.
"Please, just don't hurt him. Take what you want. He's just a child," he pleaded, gazing at Spencer's red cheeks as he tried to breath against the restrictive arm.
"Is he?" The leading man said. Spencer shot him a look of terror while Aaron tried to keep a steely deadpan going.
"Turn."
Aaron turned slowly and heard his gun being shoved into a pocket. Then a gun was against his back. "Move."
Aaron started forward slowly, the cold barrel pressed into the small of his back.
"Where?" he hissed.
"To the van. You will get in and let me restrain you or my friend will kill the child."
Aaron felt the icy tendrils of dread devour him once more and he walked to the van.
He tried to look as natural as possible despite the gas station being empty. He got to the van and paused.
"Hold still," the British voice said. Hotch's arms were yanked behind his back and cuffed together. "In you get." He was shoved forward and his shins caught on the van. He grunted in pain as a firey line of agony ran across his shins. He collided with the hard floor of the van and before he could move he felt the van shift as someone got in and then his feet were being forced into a set of shackles.
Hotch sat up finally and squinted at his captors. He caught sight of Spencer and he tried to reach for him, forgetting about his restraints.
"Knock him out," the dark-haired man said.
"No!" Hotch shouted. Spencer cried out when Kieran shoved a potent rag against his nose and mouth. Aaron watched in horror as the boy's eyes fluttered and rolled back before shutting. He shouted and yanked against his restraints. They dropped Spencer inside before sliding the door shut.
"Hey, Hey, Spencer, buddy? You awake?" Aaron shimmied closer to the toddler and looked him up and down for injury. He didn't look hurt, just red and sweaty from the struggle. He watched the young boy for a moment. The rumble of the engine caught his attention and he whipped his head around to the two men in the front seats. The back of the van had been stripped, there was nothing to hold onto, just a hardwood floor.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Aaron snapped at the oblivious men. He puffed out his chest and set his face in his normal scowl. "What you're doing can send you away for years. Assault and kidnap of a federal agent, not to mention the abduction of a child."
The one who had stuck his gun into Aaron's back turned back with a charming smile. "Mr. Hotchner, we are well aware of who you are. As for Spencer Reid there, I'm not entirely convinced by the whole 'child' business."
Aaron felt the icy feeling come back even colder. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm Scott by the way," Scott said, ignoring Aaron's glares and the spit thrown out with each of his words. "Our intent is to study Spencer. He's a scientific miracle, Mr. Hotchner."
"You've got it wrong. Spencer is my son-"
"Nice try. Oh, it looks like you have a text."
Aaron saw his phone in Scott's hands and he glanced down to his empty pocket. "Son of a butch," he muttered.
"Looks like you have a case, Agent? I'm afraid you won't be able to make it," Scott said, skimming through the message from Morgan. He tapped Kieran. "Pull over," he said.
"Let us go, at least let him go. We won't come after you. Please, just let Spencer go."
They pulled over and Scott unbuckled and hopped over the seats until he was beside Hotch.
"Someone's got to tell them, you're not going to be able to make it."
Aaron stared down at the phone in Scott's hand, watching Kieran in the corner of his eye as he too climbed over the seats and started toward Spencer.
"You won't be able to fool a team of the country's best profilers," Hotch snarled darkly. Scott continued to grin.
"I won't be fooling them."
He clicked on Morgan's number.
"Call them."
Aaron raised his head. "What?"
"Call your team."
"Why?"
"As you said, I cannot fool a bunch of profilers and you have a case. You're going to tell them exactly what we tell you otherwise we'll kill the boy."
Aaron looked over to where Spencer was laying on his side. Kieran had his gun poised once again at Spencer's head and Aaron shook his head slowly.
"No. You wouldn't do that. You said you need-"
"We don't need him alive, Agent Hotchner. An autopsy would work just as well."
Aaron glared at them as he panted and he looked down that the phone in the young man's hand.
"What do you want me to say?"
I'm ending it there because the chapter would be too long ;)
Thanks for reading.
Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I'm sorry that I'm doing this but I needed some drama.
Please review. Tell me what you thought of it.
See you next Sunday.