Chapter 7: Transcendence
Meanwhile, the BAU finally arrived at the cemetery and immediately got out of the cars.
"Everyone split up and start searching, tear the place apart if you have to. She's here somewhere!" Hotch ordered.
The team obeyed, splitting up to cover the whole cemetery as quickly as possible.
As Reid walked through the darkness, following the beam of his flashlight, he noticed that Matthew was running in another direction.
"You're going the wrong way!" the little boy shouted. "Follow me!"
At first, Reid had no idea what Matthew could be running toward, since his grave, according to the map Garcia had found, was in the direction Reid had been heading. Then he saw it, the chapel that was used for funerals, the lights were on inside. That didn't make any sense, unless Ana and her captor were in there…
"Guys! This way!" Reid called to the others. "They're in the chapel!
Having heard him, the others turned from where they were heading and followed.
Reid got there first, and when he got inside, his jaw dropped in stunned horror.
Sticking out from the second row of pews, was a young woman with brown hair laying on the ground, she was shaking and blood was spilling out of her mouth onto the floor.
When he looked up, Reid saw Matthew crouching beside her. His usually benevolent expression was one replaced by absolute hatred. The little boy's whole form shook with boiling rage.
The Unsub stood a little ways away, laughing nervously the way people do after escaping a dangerous situation, but he stopped when he perceived what Reid could plainly see. The room had gone cold, every candle near the alter had been blown out by an inexplicable breeze, inexplicable that is, unless you could see the little apparition who was about ready to go ballistic.
"You're too late… she's fading away as we speak…"
"What have you done to her?!" Matthew screamed.
"I gave the girl an aspirin…" The Unsub spat back.
Reid could tell from Matthew's behavior that the Unsub must have given Ana something she wasn't able to take… which meant that he was either lying or that alone was enough to poison her.
"How many did you give her?" Reid barked.
That's when the Unsub bolted, he made a run for the back door behind the alter, but Reid was faster. He shot the Unsub in the leg to prevent him from getting away. Matthew though, was still furious. The young ghost went right through the Unsub's body, causing him to pass out. Then somehow, with only his mind, he relit the candles and caused the flames to grow in size to the point where they set the building alight.
Morgan ran into the chapel, having heard the shots. When he saw the Unsub on the ground, he went over to arrest him.
In an act of desperate, adrenalin-fueled courage, Reid lunged forward and scooped the unconscious Ana into his arms and carried her out of the chapel. It didn't look like she had much time and he had no idea how far out the nearest medical help might be. If he didn't get her out of there quickly she'd never make it.
"Hotch! I've got her…I found Anastasia… but we need medical. Now! I think she's been poisoned!"
"There's an ambulance waiting on the edge of the cemetery, go." He ordered.
He didn't need to be told twice. He ran, and ran, with Matthew now calmed down, trailing close behind, unseen by Hotch and the others. All the while, Ana was coughing up more and more blood, it was all Reid could do to keep her head elevated in his arms so that she wouldn't choke on it. He could see Matthew running at their side, his eyes wide as he stared at her in horror and worry.
Seeing this, Reid forced himself to speed up. At this rate she'd either choke on a mix of blood and bile, or she'd bleed out internally before the medics had a chance to stabilize her. He couldn't allow it! No matter what, he couldn't let her die, not after everything she had been through, not after all Matthew had done since his own death to try to protect her. Ana had to survive…
Finally, after the longest five minutes of Reid's entire life, the ambulance came into view.
Just a little further… we're almost there… please hang on…
The instant they arrived, Reid laid Ana's limp, unconscious body down on the waiting gurney and explained to the paramedics the relevant parts of what had transpired.
18 hours later:
The aspirin she'd been given had caused Ana to bleed out internally and had required several blood transfusions, some of which had come from Reid since he was of a compatible blood type. According to the doctors, though she remained weak from blood loss and the stress from her ordeal, Ana would recover fully and be herself again before long.
Reid was at the hospital, waiting to be able to speak to her, and to return the necklace Morgan had gotten off the chapel floor after arresting the Unsub. The Unsub had turned out to be Marcus Greenfield after all. He was safely behind bars for the time being, but now the team needed Ana's version of what happened in order to keep him there.
The only loose end that Reid could see, was that Matthew was still around. With Ana safe now, her life out of danger medically and her attacker behind bars, why hadn't the boy moved on already?
Finally… Reid was given permission to speak to her. He found her reclining in a hospital bed, apparently doing nothing, not sleeping, just staring… with a look on her face, somewhere between confusion, wonder, and the edge of tears. He knew then why Matthew still remained in the mortal world. She'd been able to see him during the confrontation with Greenfield and he probably wanted to say goodbye before he finally left once and for all.
"Ana…" Spencer said as though it were a question.
"Yes?" She replied, turning her head to face him. "Oh…Oh my gosh… it's you…you're the one who saved me…aren't you?"
"I'm the one who carried you to the ambulance, yes…" He replied.
"You saved me…" She said as though she were drifting into a flood of hyper-emotional memories. "But you weren't the only one…I'm guessing since you found me in time that you're aware I wasn't that creep's only victim…I know this probably sounds like I was out of it from the blood loss… but I could swear that one of my best friends who was also killed was there… and you probably think I'm crazy now because Matt's been dead for years and that doesn't make any logical sense but…"
"I don't think you're crazy at all…"
"What? Did you see him too?" She asked.
Reid simply nodded as Matthew stepped out from behind him, still there in ghost form.
"Hi Ana…" The little boy replied.
"N-no way… no way… Matt, Buddy? Is…is that really you?" she asked in astonishment.
"Not quite in the flesh…but yeah, it's me…" he told her, smiling broadly up at her.
"Oh my God… how? It's been so long… How are you here?" she asked.
"I stuck around to protect you from that creep… then I found this guy and he helped us… Ana… I came to see you, because now that you're safe, it's time for me to go. Knowing that you and Bo were still in danger is what kept me tied to this world this entire time. Now that you'll be alright and Bo is waiting for me on the other side, I can't stay much longer."
"Then before you go… let me tell you what I should have told you all those years ago. Matt, you are, the best friend a girl ever had. You are the nicest, strongest person I've ever known and no matter what, never forget that I love you and we'll always be best friends…" she told him.
Matt smiled. "I love you too… why else would I still be here? Don't forget me, but don't let my loss keep you from living… live for both of us… Remember, I'll still be watching…" he told her. Then he gave Reid a look of gratitude and faded away.
"Thank you…" Ana said again, turning to Reid.
"I'm just sorry my team and I were too late to save your other friend…" He replied.
At that, she sighed heavily.
"Bo really is gone isn't he?" she asked.
"Yeah…unfortunately…"
"Part of me knew it but, I still hoped somewhere deep inside of me that, that jackass was lying when he told me that… he told me that, while he was forcing me to drive to the cemetery… Bo was a good guy, kind, smart, fearless. He always stood up when he knew something wasn't right and he always put other people before himself, even when he should've given that a rest and put himself first for once. I knew he was never going to stop until we found out what really happened that night. I just had no idea that something like that would get him killed." She explained.
"I found this in Bo's dorm… I asked his mom and she said that she thought he'd want you to have it…" Reid told her, handing her the photograph of the threesome when they were little.
Ana gave a small ripple of bittersweet laughter and Reid noticed that there were tears forming in her brown eyes. "This was taken outside of Matt's garage… it was his fourth birthday party. They were like my brothers, the three of us were inseparable back then…"
"If you don't mind me asking, how did you guys meet?" he asked.
"Support group… the group was for the parents but it connected the children too. Which was a good thing because there are some things that we were able to understand about each other that other people, even our own families never could. That was especially true in our generation where it was likely that we would lose half of our friends along the way, when the photo was taken we were all still here. Now it's only me. If there's one thing I've learned it's that the physical scars are nothing compared to the emotional ones. Something broke in me the night Matt passed away, it took me years to rebuild it and I might never have been able to if it hadn't been for Bo. The three of us became family in the first place not just because we understood each other but because it was the only way we could survive emotionally, psychologically…" She explained before handing the picture back. "I have my own copy of that… though it is nice to know that I'm not the only one who kept it all these years…"
"Oh, my partner also found your necklace…" he told her, taking it out and handing it to her.
"Thanks…" she replied, immediately putting it on. "So uh…how was it…you know…being haunted by the ghost of my old friend…?" she asked.
"You have no idea…let's just say he wasn't taking no for an answer. He was bound and determined to make sure nothing happened to you…" Reid answered.
"I'm just glad he can finally rest in peace… he deserved a whole lot better than what he got in life. He certainly didn't deserve all the hell he went through…I still miss him though…"
"I know the feeling…"
Reid: "In the old lore Midgard was always a harsh place, filled with monsters. Despite this, humanity wasn't seen as under siege. To the contrary, we are the invaders in a world of terrors, building societies and bringing order to a chaotic landscape. So we sing our songs to the honored dead, and bring the fight to the enemies' doorstep. That is what it means to be human." – Xander Folmer