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A/n hey all... I have one more chapter after this one coming up and then we're done. Thank you all for your support.

Final Sacrifice

The conference room at the precinct bulged with cops and agents as Reid tried to concentrate on what to say to Samara Nicosia. She didn't have a picture posted on line so he didn't know what she looked like. He didn't like going in truly blind when it looked like she could be the one they wanted.

"Please…" Hotch said. "I need everyone out of here that doesn't absolutely need to be in here. We'll brief everyone on what we're going to do after Dr. Reid sets up the meet."

Everyone left except for the team and Detective Docks. Most of them grumbled or stared at Reid, but he ignored them.

His laptop beeped while he composed. Garcia's face popped up in a window blocking his writing.

"Garcia…"

"Sorry my junior G-man, but I have more information for you."

The rest of the team gathered around Reid's chair to hear Garcia's news. "I dug into the sedative angle and found that the only doctor in the area to prescribe the amounts found in the bodies is Zola Kenyon."

"Her daughter probably used her DEA number." Reid said.

"That's what I'm thinking sweet cheeks. Samara Nicosia is the only woman that matches to all the victims."

"It's all circumstantial…" Rossi said.

"We need to catch her in the act." Hotch said.

"We can't just throw Reid to the wolf." Morgan began his dark eyes snapping.

"I'm not suggesting we let her take it that far. We pick the place they meet, somewhere we can control. All we need to see is her put the sedative in his drink."

"I know the perfect place." Docks injected. "I have a friend that used to be on the job. He retired five years ago after he lost part of one of his hands in a shootout. He owns a restaurant that has a big room for parties at the back with its own emergency exit. We could set up in that room."

"Won't she think it's weird if we use the party room?" Reid asked."

"Tell her it's your birthday." Emily suggested. "You can say you don't have any family in town and you'd love for her to spend it with you."

Reid narrowed his eyes at her.

"Trust me," She patted his shoulder. "She'll love it."

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Carson Whitaker greeted Docks quietly when they entered the restaurant. The detective, his officers and the team were dressed casually for a night out.

"Don't worry," Whitaker said to the host at the counter as the team entered. "These are some special friends. I'm taking them to the private party room."

"Yes sir."

They followed Docks friend, an older man with graying hair, but a straight bearing through the restaurant and to the back room, which divided into two rooms.

"We have two private areas for parties." Whitaker explained as the team began to set up for their operation. "Neither of them was booked for tonight, so you can use both if you need."

"Good… We'll get Reid wired and hooked up to a camera." Hotch said.

Reid stood in the middle of all the activity wondering how he'd gotten into all of this. Everyone said he had a talent for trouble, but he'd never really believed it until now. At least he had help close by if he needed it.

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She studied her appearance in the mirror. She'd taken the beads out of her hair and brushed it smooth. She'd changed everything about this new sacrifice and perhaps it would work this time. She adjusted the dark blue dress she wore making sure that it hung right on her hips. Her bag lay on the table next to the front door waiting for her to leave.

She picked up his photograph and stroked the surface of the glass with her thumb. She was smiling and laughing in his embrace. She'd thought that they'd be together forever that summer day, but cruel fate and the Gods decreed it otherwise. Her ancestors had spoken to her though, and shown her the way to bring him back. It was her fault that she'd been unsuccessful. She hadn't found the purest heart for her beloved, until now. She'd been given a sign that showed her the truth. Tonight it would be over one way or the other.

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"Stop fidgeting." Morgan said in Reid's ear.

"Stop talking incessantly to me and I will." Reid said through gritted teeth.

"All you have to do is give her the opportunity to put the drugs in your drink." Morgan went on for the tenth time.

"I know!"

"Calm down kid…"

"I'm perfectly aware of what I have to do." Reid said very slowly and firmly.

"Leave him alone Morgan," Hotch said. "He knows what to do."

Reid took his seat at the small table their host had set up for them with a white tablecloth and a couple of burning candles. He played with the cloth napkin until Emily told him that a woman at the host station had asked for him.

"The host is bringing her back." Emily said. "Don't worry Reid, we can hear and see you."

"I'm fine." He assured her. "Let's just get this done."

A minute later, Whitaker led a beautiful African American woman into the room. She was tiny… He judged her at a little over five feet tall. Her long black hair fell in waved over his shoulders. Her skin was the same color as Morgan. Her black eyes didn't smile like her mouth, but he ignored it. All he had to do was get her to put the drug in his drink and it would be over.

He stood up and extended his hand to her. "Hello, I'm Dr. Jason Spencer."

"Hello," she took his hand.

He tried not to grimace at the clammy feel to her skin or her close proximity. She might be small, but she'd tortured and killed four men. He was sure of it now. Alternatively, maybe that was just her eyes that reminded him of a raven.

Stop freaking out!

"I must admit I'm surprised by the intimacy of the room." She said as they sat down at the table.

He felt heat rise to his face at the lie he had to tell. "Actually it's my birthday. I don't have any family around to help me celebrate and I didn't want to be alone."

She smiled and this time it reached her eyes. "Happy Birthday. I'll have to let the server in on it. You should have special dessert."

"I don't want anyone to make a fuss." He said truthfully.

"It's not a fuss to have a birthday cake." She said.

"I suppose not… So tell me about yourself." He changed the subject.

She ran the tip of her right forefinger around the edge of her glass. "My mother's from South Africa, but I was born here. My dad was a surgeon. He met my mom in Africa, married her and she came back here with him."

Their server came in and they ordered. She told the server that it was Reid's birthday. The young woman wished him a Happy Birthday and left the room.

"I'm sorry," Reid said. "I need to excuse myself for a minute."

"Don't be too long. I want to hear all about you when you get back."

Reid left the room and headed to the second private room. The small hidden cameras around the room picked up everything Samara did while he was gone. For once Morgan didn't tease him as they watched her drop a couple of tablets into his coffee.

"The dose will let her get you out of here." Emily said. "She could use the excuse that you're sick. The sedative she uses are immediately incapacitating Dr. Singh said.

"I want to go back in with you." Morgan told Hotch.

"No!" Reid protested.

"He can handle it Morgan." Rossi said before Hotch could speak. "Show him some respect."

Reid gave Rossi a grateful look as one of the plain-clothes cops gave him a vest. He strapped it on and followed Hotch back to the room. The arrest ended up very anticlimactic. He put the cuffs on her and read her rights. She didn't speak at all, as they took her out the back.

"I want you to talk to her Reid." Hotch said as they headed to their borrowed SUV.

Reid nodded. "We need a confession." He admitted.

"We can hold her for drugging you, but we need more." Hotch said.

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Reid opened the door to the interrogation room. "Ms Nicosia… My name is Dr. Spencer Reid. I'm an agent of the FBI with the Behavioral Analysis Unit. We're recording this conversation. You've been read your rights and you understand them?"

"Yes… but I don't know why you dragged me in here. I haven't done anything."

"You drugged my coffee. We caught you on tape."

She laughed. "That's entrapment and I want a lawyer."

"You can have a lawyer if you like, but first I should tell you that we searched your home and found your stash of souvenirs."

Samara shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You asked for a lawyer, so we're done here." Reid began to stand.

"Alright, I don't think we have to bring one in just yet." She smirked at him. "You fooled me." She said.

He didn't respond, just watched her.

"I never would have guessed that you're an FBI agent." She flirted.

"Ms Nicosia…"

"See, you're blushing. I didn't think FBI agents could blush."

"Why don't you tell me why you killed those men?" Reid asked.

She sat back in her chair. "Why don't you kiss me Dr Reid? I know you want to."

"I'm not interested in that Ms. Nicosia. I want to know why you used Muti magic to attempt to bring your fiancé back to life."

"You can't bring back the dead." She argued in a harder tone. "You're dreaming." Her eyes began to spark.

"We found personal items of all the men in the basement of your house. You inherited the family home from your father. It's far enough off the main road for you to torture them without anyone hearing you. You had to inflict great pain in order for the magic to work, but it didn't work for you, did it."

She laughed again. "I didn't know the FBI believed in fairy tales. The practice of mutilation and killing people in South Africa is abhorrent to me. I was taught better by my mother."

Reid opened his file. "We found herbs, oils and incantations in your basement. Some of them look handwritten from old records you took from your mother. You tried to cast your own spells, but it didn't work. Your fiancé is dead Samara. You can't bring him back. You killed four men that looked like him because you believe that you have to sacrifice that which you love to make the magic work."

"He shouldn't have died." She said, tears welling up in her eyes. "You shouldn't have died. Why did you go away and leave me."

She rose from her chair and moved around to grab Reid around his collar. "You promised me you'd never leave me alone." She screamed at him.

"Stay back." Reid said as Morgan burst into the room. "I'm okay."

For once, Morgan didn't argue, but he didn't leave the room.

"I'm sorry," Reid, said laying his hands on her face. "I know I promised you I'd never leave, but I was just too tired and weak. I tried to hold on. I really did."

"I need you baby. I love you so much." She sobbed.

"I - I l-love you t-too. I p-promise I'll always be with you."

"I'm so sorry," she said, her eyes clearing a bit. "I did it all for you, baby. It was all for us to be together again."

"I know Samara… I know. It's okay." He stroked her face. "I'll make sure you get help."

"Can I see my mother?" She asked in a very small voice that reminded him of a pleading child.

"I'll try." Reid told her as Morgan and one of the LEOs pulled her away. "I promise."

They led her out of the room. He stared at the door for a long time, then sagged back in his seat and put his hands over his face.