Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Criminal Minds, I do own my OCs though.

I got this chapter done much quicker than I thought ^^. This is the continuation of the flashback and then the next chapter will be a 2 year jump into the present. I hope you all enjoy! All grammatical errors are mine.

A/N: Trigger Warnings for Past Child Abuse and Cutting.

Chapter 2: Of Stamps, Passports, and Trust

-x-X-x-

"They didn't do anything. Nana please!" a sound of a belt meeting skin rang throughout the small room along with the cries of the three children in the room.

"Nana hit me, not them," another agonizing shout of pain, but she held on tighter to the two children that shrunk deeper into her protective embrace.

"Nana! Nana please!" cried the younger girl, holding on to the elder's dress, crying at the pain being delivered to her protector.

Smack.

"Nana! We'll be good! It's raining, stop hurting her," sobbed the young boy.

The elder girl began to collapse, growing numb with the stinging on her back that she was sure were welts.

"Wretched children, nothing but sinners and demons," hissed the wielder of the belt, and with renewed vigor, placed a hit on the elder girl's neck, which made her cry out in pain.

Suddenly, the assault was stopped and muffled voices were heard, the elder was afraid to look back, but she knew she was out of the woods when she saw Mrs. Conner, the kind wife Mr. Conner, the neighbor, drenched from head to toe, kneeling down besides the girl, disbelief and utter sadness in her eyes. In a hurry she tried to pick up the three children, but the oldest pushed the two youngest to her, asking her to take them first. Behind her, the girl heard the strong voice of Mr. Conner, holding back the crazed LeAnn in a bear type grip, trying to talk some sense, she guessed to the woman.

"No, no Miss LeAnn! What are you thinking?"

She cried in hysteria, her madness finally taking over. "Damnit! You're letting the sinners escape! They need to be cleaned! Purified of the sins! Let me go!"

"They are clean Miss LeAnna. Clean as angles!," The girl finally turned around, seeing the older man was restraining the woman in a death grip, the belt, now half way across the yard. The man found his wife, hugging the two children close to her, the both of them crying their hearts out. "Get the children in the truck Viviane!"

The woman did as she was told securing the children in seat, then braving the rain to get to the oldest girl, who was hugging herself, the once white sundress was now stained red from the back. "George! Honey, come on!" She reached the girl and pulled her to herself, running with her to the truck. "Oh dear Heavenly Father, Nessa you're bleeding! Oh darling!"

"Get them all to the truck Vivi and drive them home! I gotta find Mr. Bay. She's lost her mind! " That was the last thing Nessa heard as she was ushered into the truck. Everything was numb, everything hurt so badly. The darkness finally came for her, but did release its grasp until a few hours later. Nessa found herself in a warm bed, and in a new simple sundress, her back covered in gauze. Next to her on the large bed was the young boy, Tyler, and the younger girl, Laura, both in warm clothes and both shaken to the core and forever scarred.

Nessa, who was 8, sat up, her back burning, but she didn't seem to care. The little girl crawled across the bed to Nessa's lap. Laura is only 5. Tyler, who was six, was laying on his back. He reached over and grabbed her hand and held on to it for dear life, not wanting to let go. Nessa grasped it back and brought her other arm to wrap around the young girl. There were no words exchanged, there was no need. They held onto each other until the door opened, relieving Mrs. Conner along with Mr. Bay, the town's home-visit doctor. He took in the sight of the children, broken and beaten, and let out a sigh, his eyes, full of pity, sympathy and sadness finding those of jade eyes of Nessa. For some reason, the pity made Nessa want to curl up and hide, never to be seen again, but she knew it would not happen. Feeling her tears begin to fall, she turned away from the eyes of the doctor and buried her face in Laura's hair and just cried.

She never wanted this. She never wanted this life.

-x-X-x-

"-Neil. Miss O'Neil?" Nessa was brought out of the past and into the now, looking into the startled face of the media liaison. "Are you alright?" JJ's eyes were focused on the 18 year olds lap where were fingers and hands began to move slightly and tap at a rapid pace in a way that sort of resembled the playing of a piano. The jade eyed teen also seemed completely lost in her own thoughts

"Oh, sorry, I tend to space. Yeah, I'm fine thanks. And feel free to call me Nessa, everyone does," she said with a smile, playing with the hem of her dress.

"Nessa." JJ smiled at the teen. "Do you play?"

Nessa smiled back, pushing a lock of warm brown hair behind her ear. "A little, my friend Charlotte plays piano our choir. We often joke with her, but she teaches us if we just want to learn. I guess over the years, piano became a stress reliever," she replied. Bringing her hands together on her lap, she looked over to the blonde liaison. "I think I'm ready Ms. Jareau."

"Are you sure you want to do this. No one will thank any different if you back out now?"

"I'm sure," Nessa stood up from her chair, her demeanor changing slightly as a thoughtful smile gracing her face. "We both have a collection and a passport, so he'll more than likely open up to a fellow passenger."

"I'm sorry?" JJ stared at the brown haired teen with confusion and curiosity, stumped by her choice of words.

"Sorry about the lingo," she gave a sheepish smile as brought her cardigan closer around her, "People like us tend to let it slip every once and a while. Bad habit." She stood and began to finger the hairband around her wrist.

JJ eyed the teen suspiciously. "Okay," she turned and gathered some things from the desk before leading the girl down a small hall way. Nessa followed, her fingers tapping at her side, her mind somewhere else.

"If you feel like you're in danger or if you want out," said JJ as they got to the door to the interview room, "Just use the signal and one us will be here in a heartbeat."

"A tug on the earlobe, right?" Nessa did just that as she walked along JJ.

"You got it," JJ smiled at the 18 year old.

"Okay," Nessa began to feel her heart race and her palms begin to sweat as they approached the door to the interrogation room. The pair passed the other BAU agents as well as Nora and Mark, Nora giving her a nod of confidence. "You can do this, Sweetheart." Mark gave her a cocky smile and a thumbs up, as if it were the most carefree thing in the world.

Nessa smiled back at the two and nodded to the other agents and Chief Gates before turning once again to JJ, signaling for her to open the door. "Lord be with me," she said to herself under her breath, her nerves still playing with her. She smoothed out her sundress before walking past the threshold.

The boy at the table looked up from his folded arms to see the girl walk in calmly, looking him straight in the eye. He let out a mocking huff through this nose as the girl took the seat in front of him.

"Really? They think they could get to me to remember by using you and your powers of seduction?" Ceels gave a small laugh. "What's up with the FBI these days."

"First of all," started Nessa, smoothing out her dress over her lap, "I'm not FBI. I go to Waynesboro East High. Second of all, don't kid yourself, hon, I'm not here to seduce you, I just want to chat with you," she gave him a genuine smile.

"Yeah, and the Tooth Fairy is my aunt." The two teens in the room stayed silent and just stared at each other for several minutes, wanting to see who would crack first. The federal agents, Chief Gates, Nora O'Neil, and Mark watched from the other side of the two way glass as the two just locked eyes in silence.

During the viewing, Nora O'Neil's phone gave off a muffled buzz from her pocket. Pulling it out, she read the text that she just received. Mark looked over her shoulder and read it as well.

"You should go Mom," said Mark softly as several eyes fell on the woman.

Nora shook her head. "No, It's fine. The Julie is with him," tucking her phone back into her pocket. The agents could tell she was worried about something other than her daughter beyond the glass.

The shaggy haired teen let out a sigh. "Mom, Nessa can handle this, I'll be here. You need to be with him. You know how Lil Bo-Bo gets," he wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind her in a comforting hug, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Nora," started Chief Gates, "If it's about your little one, it's better if you go. Nessa is a big girl, she can handle herself, Beau on the other hand is 4, and he needs his mom. I'll have the kids be dropped off as soon as this is done."

"Are you sure," asked Nora, giving a hopeful but weary look not only at the chief but at the agents.

"Mrs. O'Neil, if you have something else to attend to, you're more than welcomed to go. You already signed the papers necessary for this interview to take place as precaution," said Morgan to the woman. She nodded and was escorted out of the room by her son, who came back inside a few short seconds later.

"She said I should stay for Nessa," he said, never taking his eyes off the glass. Everyone turned their attention back to the two beyond the glass, who simply sat there still staring each other down. Zach Ceels with a scowl, Nessa with a small smile.

Finally a few more minutes of silence, Nessa leaned back in her chair, he gaze remaining on Zach, looking at him as if he was some sort of friend.

"Hi there."

"So what exactly is the point of you being here?" asked Zach in a frustrated tone, his gaze becoming harsher. "Please, what can a little princess like you have to chat about with me? Come on, look at you," he gestured to her, his temper beginning to rise, "I bet mommy and daddy give you everything you ever wanted. That dress probably cost more than my monthly rent-"

"Actually, my mom died from leukemia when I was 6 and I don't remember much of the man who is supposed to be my father," she started, looking at her nails, "he walked out on my mom and I when I was 4 or 5. And as for my clothes," she fingered the hem of her dress, "I got the dress off the rack of a vintage store for about five bucks. Not a bad buy if you ask me. The cardigan is a hand-me-down from my foster sister." She looked up to see Zach's face, only to see a bit of shock and confusion. Nessa just continued to smile. The federal agents looked puzzled at the first statement Nessa made. Yes, it was odd that there was no sign or mention of a father, Nora was alive and well. Some of the agents glanced at Mark out of the corner of their eye, to see him give a small smile of sorts, which only served to throw them off a bit.

"Let me introduce myself properly," said the girl softly to the slightly confused boy in front of her. "My name is Vanessa Rose Thomas. Feel free to call me Nessa."

"Why is she lying about her last name?" said JJ out loud, more to herself.

" 'Cause she's not." All eyes turned to Mark, who still had the small smile on his face. "Just listen."

"Zach," started Nessa looking him in the eyes with gentleness, "I'm a passenger too." He looked weary of the girl, wondering what she was up to. Her eyes moved to his arms, covered by the sleeves of his maroon button down shirt. He followed Nessa's gaze to his sleeve cover arms. Ceels looked back at her buring his arms further into themselves in an attempt to hide them.

"I'll show you mine, if you show me yours." Zach looked skeptical for a moment and them nodded to the girl. Nessa took off her cardigan and pushed down the small straps of her dress, showing off her shoulders. Both shoulders held a total of about 15 small red lines that ran in every which way. On her upper left arm, a rather large raised scar, flesh pink but healed over, ran about 4 inches long. She stood from her chair and turned around and showed Zach her back. Ness pulled the smocked fabric of the dress down a bit to show scares, about 6 held over welts varying in direction and size, all scattered among the expanse of her upper back. There was another raised scar on neck on the right side that was a good 3 inches fading at the ends, the others that littered pale skin were no longer than an inch. There were also white lines mixing with the pink on her back, scared that were healed and nearly faded. She grabbed the chair that she sat on and dragged it to be in Zach's line of vision on one of the sides of the table facing the two way mirror. She sat on the table, he Converse clad feet resting on the chair. "Here," she said point to a spot on her ankle on her left foot, "and here," repeating the action to the right foot. She moved off the table back to her side dragging the chair with her. "I've also go some here," pointing towards her right hip, "and here," rubbing the area down from her armpit on her left side. "Girls are a bit more cautious on where we place them," she smiled at the boy who looked at her with a new light, something the profiler's noticed in his eyes. Trust.

After getting over the initial shock of seeing the teen covered in scars, the team looked over to Mark, who had taken rolled up his sleeves rubbing a rather large raised scar at the base of his left wrist, which was hidden by a leather cuff. "I think it's best if you pay attention," said Mark point towards the window.

The teen behind the glass gave a sigh as he unbuttoned his sleeves and rolled them up to his elbows, showing off large, raised, jagged scars that covered his forearms all around. His arm was covered in them, barely any normal skin left to the visible eye.

"When were you put on the train?" asked Zach, all attitude gone, and curiosity peeking a bit.

"When I was about 7 , by the time I was 10 my passport was getting really full." she said calmly.

"Kellogs?" asked Zack looking up a sad smile.

"Yeah. Johnsons, McKibbeans, Hudsons, and Miss LeAnne…just to name a few."

"'Miss LeAnne make you all pray-"

"On our knees in raw rice? Yeah," Nessa face turned dark, forgetting that people were watching on the other side. "She did a few Hail Mary's with me and two others, just because of little things. It's how I got the collection on my back."

"Oh…," Zach looked down at his hands. "Switch branch?"

"Belt." Zach nodded slowly.

"What was it…..'Hail Mary full of grace, the lord is with thee, baptize these demons-"

"With your saving grace and blessed is thy light. Purify their soul and sinful blood with your motherly grace. Amen." Both said in unison, looking bother tormented and broken, not like the how they were before, stubborn and confident.

"I think I believed in God the moment the system took me out of here," said Zach leaning back in his chair.

"No, it was when they arrested her and locker her up a few months after I left that station that I heard angels sing," Nessa laughed softly.

"Heh…there are such things are mircles," scoffed Zach. "You were dropped off?"

"No, a station, actually the one right after Miss LeAnne's, took me in when the conductors were about to put me back on the train. She took in some other passenger's as well."

Zach gave a sad smile, "You found a home?" The girl nodded, "What's it like."

"The station can get pretty hectic at times with how many passengers reside there, but ," she stopped a bit looking at the table with a thoughtful smile. "She's amazing. Nora has so much patience, it's insane. She takes care of five of us, two teenagers about to fly the nest, an 11, 7, 4 year old. It used to be six of us but my oldest foster sister is about to graduate from UCLA and is settling down there. Nora also works as a part-time midwife and a full time mom/referee for us," she laughed softly, but it died down as she got serious, "I used to think the world was out to get me, hell, I went through 14 homes in almost 17 months. But when I found Nora, and I saw what kind of person she is….i don't know, my outlook changed dramatically. It made me see that through all the dirt, the grime, and the shit that we as passengers go through, there is light."

The teen gave a shrug, "That's what you say."

"No I mean it. Listen," she started gently, "I was in the abusive homes, and I would say to myself that if I ever get out of the system, I wasn't going to be like these people. I'm going to love my kids, and tell them that every day. I told myself that I was going to make something of myself and help people. Yeah, it still haunts me every night to remember all the times I was beaten, whipped, degraded and passed along the next family like an unwanted piece of furniture. Hell, I woke up crying for four months in a row, praying and scared that I was going to wake up and still be with Miss LeAnne, or the McKibbeans, and lone, but I wasn't because Nora was by my bedside in a heartbeat or my older foster sister was sing to be to calm down. It took me almost two years to call Nora 'Mom' or for me to acknowledge my foster siblings as my family because I didn't trust anyone, because I was so scared that the moment I trusted them, they would hurt me." For a moment, jade eyes began to water, tears threatened to fall but they didn't. She spoke softy to the other at the opposite end of the table. "I know it's hard to put some trust in complete strangers, but, Zach, you can't give up and just block out the world and believe that there is no such things as trust. You've trusted me enough to show me your stamps. Why don't you just trust the FBI, just this once to help save someone, they aren't here to hurt, only to help. Even I can see that.."

He looked at her fully in the eyes, unsure if what she said was true. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because trust is the first thing the system takes away from us and is the first thing we need to learn to get back into the real world. Once you learn to trust people again, you rebuild yourself, and find your place in this world, or what you want to do with your life.. All it takes is one small act of trust, but you need to trust yourself first to put your trust in the right place. Nora taught me that, Zach, if you want a new life outside the system, the first big baby step is to trust yourself to trust others." It was hard to believe that an 18 year old girl was talking so maturely, and just as powerfully. The profilers were in shock and awe at her grace and her strength in general, not just to go into a room with a volatile witness but to open up her past, despite how traumatic it was Nessa put her arms on the table, leaning forwards. "This could be the first step to the rest of your life. All it takes is a little trust. What do you say?"

He let out a sigh as Nessa leaned back in her chair, hopeful of his answer, hopeful that she made some sort of impact on him. He looked at the two way mirror to his left and let out another long breath of air. "Alright ."

"You'll let them help?"

He gave her a small smirk, then a nod. "Let's get this over with."

-x-X-x-

Morgan came out with both Ceels and Nessa, Zach with his sleeves down and Nessa with her cardigan back on, as the saw one of the deputies take a handcuffed Daniel Mauro into a secured jail cell. Through the cognitive interview, Zach had been able to place Mauro there at the scene, and had agreed to testify in court if needed. When it came to interviewing Mauro on the new evidence found, he let a small detail slip, which consequently named him as the unsub.

Mark had greeted Nessa with a hug, and introduced himself to Zach. "Mark Siegel. Nessa's foster brother." The teens chatted a bit, before the remaining profilers met up with them.

"Thank you, to all of you, we could not have done this without you," said Hotch as he shook hands with the three teens.

"He would've gotten away with it if you hadn't talked to Zach," said Prentiss to Nessa.

"Passengers are always there to cover each other, we just need to find one another," said Nessa, nudging Zach's side a bit.

Morgan turned to Zach, "I got them to drop the charges put against you, as well as any other bogus charge they had on your file. You're cleared, man."

Zach shook Morgan's hand, "Thanks Agent. Really, thank you."

"I've been down the same road, I know what it's like," he nodded towards the teen.

"So, you're record's clear, you got your car back, what's next?" asked Nessa.

"Probably put in a two week's notice at work and start looking for a community college in Charlottesville," shrugged Ceels with a small bit of a smile.

Mark found a random piece of paper and pen and scribbled on it before handing it to Zach. "If you ever need to talk or just catch up, mine's the second number and Nessa's the first. Don't hesitate to text us up for anything, man," the other teen said, giving Zach a handshake, Nessa doing the same.

"Sound's good," he said as he turned to leave the station, before reaching the doors, he gave a small wave to the group without turning around.

"So," started JJ gently, "foster kids."

Mark smiled a bit, "Yeah, I was taken in by Nora when I was 9. Nessa came into the chaos about 8 months later."

"And the 'stamps'?" asked Prentiss softly, wondering if it was an appropriate question to ask.

"Not every foster kid has them, but it just became a way to relieve the pain in a way, especially in the worst of times," added Nessa softly. "As stupid as it is, they were stamps, or souvenirs of sorts of all the things we went through."

Nessa's silence was a cue for them not to press any further. Mark looked at some of the questioning looks on the profiler's face. "Yes, Nora knows, and we stopped and we have no reason to do it anymore, and looking back now, it was pretty silly of us to even do it.." This response was enough for the profilers as Chief Gates came to the group and gave his final thanks to the profilers and the teens.

"Tell Nora thanks and tell her I hope Beau get better real soon okay?" Nessa and Mark nodded, and watched as Chief Gates left to take care of paper work. "Oh," started Gates as he turned around, "Agents, do you mind giving the kids a ride?"

"Not at all, Ms. O'Neil has to fill out some post interview paperwork anyways, for court purposes," said Hotch to the then turned to his team."Let's pack everything up," and they headed back towards the room, Mark following behind the team, offering his help.

Nessa stayed back, thinking about the interview. She was brought out of her stupor when she heard a concerned voice.

"Miss Thomas are you alright?" Nessa turned to see Dr. Reid worried about her current state.

"Dr. Reid," she sighed, calming her racing heart. "Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking."

"Would you, uh," he stumbled for a moment, "like to talk about it?" They both sat on a pair of plastic chairs, Reid passing her a bottle water.

"Do you think he'll be okay?"

"If you're referring to Zach Ceels, then I believe so," started out the 25 year old genius, "When you talked to him, one could see a new sense of direction that seemed nearly impossible before. You gave him new hope, but only time will tell in the long run. Studies have found that by the age of 24, 60% of males that were in the foster system were convicted of a crime. Hopefully, Zach will fall into the 40%."

"Same here," said Nessa. They continued to talk for some time, the nagging feeling in the back of Reid's head telling him that he should know the girl never left, but something else that he couldn't figure out was growing. They continued to talk casually. Reid had found out that the teen as a performer- a choir member and a soloist, as well as ranked among the top of her class and involved in many clubs. He also learned that she wanted to attend Webster University in DC and become a physical therapist. Hotch sometime later had announced that they would be leaving and heading home as soon as they dropped of the teens. As Nessa left to retrieve her backpack, he could help but wonder why he found her so engaging, but he quickly pushed those thoughts away as he caught up with Morgan before heading to the SUVs.

"So where to?" asked JJ as they got into one of the black SUVs.

"The Children's Hospital would be fine," said Nessa, throwing her backpack to the trunk area of the SUV. "Our little hellion of a baby brother had surgery this morning, that's why Mom couldn't stay," finished Mark, "Is that okay?"

"Yeah, just tell us how to get there."

-x-X-x-

The group of profilers walked through the sterile halls of the hospital with the two teens leading the way. They reached a rather large door that read "CALL TO BE LET IN: CHILDREN'S CARE UNIT". Nessa picked up the phone that hung on the wall before the entrance and held it to her ear, waiting for the door to open. When it opened, the white walls turned into walls of brightly colored animals and jungle forests. The group walked through the doors, crossing the threshold into the Children's Unit. Mark muttered a quiet thank you to the nurse at the front desk, who simply nodded. They continued walking until they arrived at the second to the last door on the left. On the door, a monkey colored with scribbles by a four year old. The name on the monkey read Beau O'Neil.

"You all can come in," said Nessa as she opened the door. They walked in passed the small hall that held the bathroom, to see a another teenage girl with brown eyes and long light brown-blonde hair sitting on the hospital bed with a small dirty blonde 4 year old child in a hospital gown, wires coming out every which way connecting him to various monitors in the room. Both the teen and child were watching TV, but both turned at the opened door.

"Hey Monkey," started Mark softly, "How you doing?" He walked over to the little boy, a weak smile on his lips as Mark gently hugged the boy. Nessa then made her way over to the bed.

"Hey Honey. You okay?" the little boy turned to the other girl on the bed.

"Charlie? Nessa sit here?" he asked weakly.

"Sure baby," the girls switched spots, Nessa on the bed, and the other girl, Charlie, sat on the arm of the armchair in the corner of the room with Mark. As soon as Nessa got comfy, the little boy curled up next to her, a hand petting his hair. The little boy, Beau, reached for Nessa's hand and put it near the back of his head where the oxygen tube was.

Nessa smiled sadly at Beau. "Baby, you know I can't do that. Not until you get better." The little boy gave a pout but that soon faded as he drifted to sleep. Nessa had to stop herself from sheading her tears. "I hate seeing him like this," said out loud.

"I know what you mean," said the other girl, as she fiddled with a ringlet of baby pink hair. "He's not the little terror we all know and love," she smiled a bit before continuing, "Nora said he colored a lot today and I came over since my last block was a free period, we completed a puzzle and watched TV. Becky wanted me to sneak her out but, she had AP Euro with Christiansen"

"That's right," sighed Ness, making a face, "Christiansen is going to kill me for missing out today. I'll make it up to her," she ran her fingers through eh toddlers' hair. "I'll stop by her class before first bell, let her torture me a bit."

"I'm sure this one will be back to his horrible four year old self, causing chaos and destruction," smiled Mark, watching the little boy sleep. "Where's Mom, Charlie?"

The teen tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "She went to go pick up Nathan and Camille from school. I offered to stay with him until she got back or until you two got here. Becky says she'll try to visit after dance practice."

"Oh!," Mark smacked himself on the head, "We'll don't I feel like an ass. BAU agents, this is Charlotte LaCorra, our musical library. Charlie, these are the agents that we help."

"It's nice to meet all of you," she said, but before Hotch could response, two children, pushed their way past the agents to the bed where Nessa and the toddler were currently in.

The boy, who was older than the young girl at his side had muddy brown hair and dark brown eyes. The boy scolded the younger girl gently. "Camille!" he said in a hushed voice, "It's rude to push pass people without saying 'Excuse me'."

"I'm sorry, but I wanted to see Beau really, really badly!" Camille, the younger girl had jet black hair that was put into a French braid, a purple and green backpack was still on.

Nora came into the room, surprised to see the agents "Agents! I hope the interview went well?" she asked softly, hoping she wouldn't wake the exhausted four year-old. "Camille, Nathan, please keep it down and don't turn the TV up any louder, Beau is taking a nap." The children nodded as Camille, who was 7, ran to Mark and eagerly began telling him about her day at school, while Nathan, 11, stood by Nessa, who asked him about anything interesting her learned in science today.

"Yes ma'am. We got out guy thank to your kids," said Morgan, who couldn't help but smile as she saw the interactions between the O'Neil kids.

"I'm glad they could be of help, and I'm sorry I had to leave," she looked at the little boy curled against Nessa. "Beau had surgery yesterday and I was just worried about the stitches on his stomach and the pain."

"It's no problem ma'am," started Hotch, "I have a little one of my own around the age of your son. Well, we should be heading off," Nessa began to edge out of the bed, careful not to bother the sleeping child. Nathan, took her place as the human pillow for the dirty blonde boy. She and Mark headed to the group and shook hands with them once again, thanking them for their help. When the team left the room, it was Reid who had remembered about the form that Ms. O'Neil had to sign.

"I'll meet you all outside," and with that Reid, walked back to the room, in which Camille had asked if Nessa could redo her braid and if Ana would be video chatting with them tonight. After giving an apology to the family and presenting Nora with the paperwork, he got the signature and began to leave when Nessa had offered to walk to the lobby with him. Both walked side by side when they reached the elevator. "I hope your little brother gets better."

"Thank you," Nessa smiled, "There was something wrong with is large intestine, so they had to perform surgery." They reached to lobby floor, and both got off. Reid waved goodbye, but then stopped and turned before Nessa got on the elevator.

"Um…Nessa? Do you mind if, uh, if I could give you my email address? I use it that often but maybe we could keep in touch, if you ever need help or advice when getting into Webster, I know someone who works there." Nessa seemed shocked at first but quickly smiled. "That sounds great." Reid handed her one of his cards.

"Feel free to message me any time."

"Thank you Dr. Reid."

"Spencer," Nessa looked at him with her jade eyes in question, "You can call me Spencer."

Another genuine smile graced her lips, "Spencer," she repeated, "I'll write to you soon. Have a safe trip back home."

"Thanks," and with that head out the lobby towards to the two waiting SUVs.

"What took so long pretty boy?" asked Morgan as he got into the SUV, "Cute nurse?"

"Just drive Morgan."

-x-X-x-

When Reid got back to his apartment, he placed his to go bag and messenger bag in the corner and went to his small kitchen, throwing the case file on the counter before turning on his coffee pot. An unfamiliar white envelope had fallen from the file on to the counter. Curiosity won him over as he opened the letter and unfolded the paper revealing only a single sentence containing five words and two words below it. What also caught his eye was a long rectangular card of sorts with a brightly colored back that was also in the envelope. A tarot card? He thought as he read the bottom of the card- The Tower. He then looked at that sheet of paper.

Thank you for finding her.

Unexpected Events

-Tarot

-x-X-x-

Reviews make me a happy authoress =)

I'll try and have the next chapter done by next Friday!