Disclaimer- I do not own CBS or Criminal Minds.

"What the hell?!" Morgan exclaimed as he ran out of the barn, followed closely behind by Megan and Colby.

"Oh no!" Megan gasped as her horrified gaze focused on the house, or what was left of it.

Gideon and his group had emerged from the garage at this point and together the six agents dashed toward the house.

"Uhn," Hotchner groaned as he got to his feet. His legs were a little bit shaky and he could feel blood flowing down his face and arms but he could move all of his extremities without too much pain and he didn't appear to have any serious injuries.

"You okay Hotch?" Don asked from a few feet away as he too struggled to get to his feet.

"I'll live," Hotchner replied, his eyes scanning the smoke filled room in search of the third member of their team. "Reid, you okay?"

No reply.

"REID!"

Hotchner and Don quickly searched the rubble and they soon found the spot where Reid lay, unconscious and partially buried by debris. "Hang in there Reid," Hotchner said as he and Don began to quickly move the debris that covered the young agent. "We'll have you out of there in no time."

"Hotch!" Morgan called out from the front door as he and the others carefully entered the house. "Are you guys okay?"

"Reid's hurt," Hotchner called back. "Call for an ambulance."

Morgan nodded and stepped back outside so that his cell phone would have a decent signal. Gideon and the others continued their way carefully into the demolished house and when they reached the spot where Reid lay Gideon quickly dropped to his knees and helped to move the debris.

With the added assistance they soon had Reid free and Don gazed around the room, an apprehensive look in his eyes. "Look guys, I know that we shouldn't move him but there's a fire upstairs and this place could come down at any time."

Hotchner nodded. It was basic medical knowledge that you shouldn't move a victim if there was any chance that they might have a spinal cord injury but in this case they really didn't have any other choice. They'd have to move Reid outside and hope that it didn't cause him any further injury. "Grab his arm Don."

Don nodded and gently grabbed one of Reid's arms. Hotchner grabbed the other and together the two agents carried the young man out of the house. Then, once they'd moved a safe distance away, they placed him gently down on the grass.

"Come on Spencer," Gideon said once they'd all moved outside of the demolished house. "Wake up."

Reid remained unresponsive and he now seemed to be having some difficulty breathing. His breaths were coming in quick, short gasps.

"I called an ambulance," Morgan said, joining the group at Reid's side. "Is our boy genius going to be okay?"

"He'll be fine," Gideon said quietly, his hand resting on Reid's arm and a far away look in his eyes.

Hotchner noticed the look in his colleague's eyes and he immediately knew that Gideon was reliving the bombing in Boston that had claimed the lives of several agents. "Jason are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Gideon said quietly, his gaze never leaving the young man who was lying so still on the ground.

"Dammit," Morgan muttered under his breath, his gaze leaving the prone form of his young partner and coming to rest on the house. Flames were now visible in the upstairs windows and smoke was billowing from a hole in the roof. "It's a miracle any of them survived."

At that moment Reid began coughing and as he did so blood came out of one corner of his mouth.

"Not good," Colby said as he placed his first two fingers to the side of Reid's neck. The younger agent's heartbeat was erratic. "We need the paramedics NOW!"

As if on cue the sound of sirens could be heard echoing through the air and moment's later an ambulance and a fire engine pulled up to the scene. Two paramedics jumped out of the ambulance, equipment in hand, and ran over to the spot where the group of FBI agents were huddled around Reid.

"Alright guys," on of the medics said as he knelt down beside Reid. "I'm gonna need you to step back and give us some room."

Reluctantly the group of FBI agents obeyed.

The two paramedics briefly assessed Reid's condition and then the young agent was immobilized and placed on a stretcher.

"Hotch," Gideon said quietly as the group of agents watched as Reid was moved over to the ambulance. "You and Don should ride with him. You guys need to be checked out too."

Hotchner shook his head. "I'm fine. Just a few cuts and bruises."

Gideon placed his hand on Hotchner's shoulder and gazed at the younger agent. "Now what was it that you told Reid after that shoot out in Valley City?"

"That going to the hospital was SOP in these types of situations," Hotchner reluctantly replied, knowing exactly where Gideon was going with this.

"I know you're the leader Hotch," Gideon said in a quiet but no less serious voice. "But I'm not taking no for an answer on this. Go to the hospital and get checked out."

"Fine," Hotchner said, knowing that Gideon was right. "Come on Don."

Don nodded without protest and together the two Agents in Charge walked over to the ambulance that was parked in the drive way a few feet away.

BAU HEADQUARTERS

Charlie had remained at Reid's desk after the group departed however Jareau felt sorry for him, sitting all alone while his brother and friends were out going after a group of terrorists, and she walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey Charlie, are you alright?"

Charlie nodded. "Just a little worried," he told her honestly.

"That's understandable," Jareau told him. "You know, I was just on my way to see Garcia. Would you like to come with me?"

Charlie thought about her offer for a few minutes before nodding once again. "Yea I think I would."

"Come on then," Jareau said with a friendly smile.

Charlie got to his feet and together he and Jareau made their way down to the office that the BAU's digital intelligence officer called home. When they reached the office, Jareau knocked lightly on the door and waited for a reply from Garcia.

"Come in."

Jareau raised an eyebrow, surprised by just how normal that sounded. She slowly opened the door and peered inside. "Garcia are you alright?"

"I'm okay," Garcia replied, offering Jareau a smile. Then she noticed Charlie, who was still standing in the doorway. "Hey Charlie."

Charlie seemed not to have heard the greeting and his gaze was fixed on something above Garcia's head, a strange expression on his face. Wondering what had him so transfixed Jareau and Garcia both followed his gaze to the television screen. There was a picture of a burning house on the screen.

"That looks bad," Garcia said softly.

"Look at the caption at the bottom," Charlie said, pointing toward the screen. "Isn't that where Don and the others were going?"

Garcia read the caption at the bottom of what the media had labeled a mysterious fire and she gasped. "That's exactly where they were going. Oh no!"

Garcia wasn't wearing her wireless headset and without another word she grabbed the phone and dialed a familiar number. She fidgeted with the phone cord as she listened to it ring. "Pick up," she said in a pleading voice. "Pick up. . . pick up."

"Hey baby girl," a familiar voice came across the phone after a wait of what seemed like forever.

"We saw this f-fire on the news," Garcia choked out, relieved beyond measure now that she'd heard his voice.

"There was an explosion," Morgan told her. "There was a bomb in the house and Hotch, Don and Reid were caught in the blast."

"Oh no!" Garcia gasped, her hand going up to her throat.

"Calm down," Morgan said in a soothing voice. "Hotch and Don only have minor injuries. Reid was hurt the worst but he's stable."

"What hospital?"

"Hope Memorial."

"We'll be there," Garcia said, hanging up the phone.

"What happened?" Both Charlie and Jareau demanded as soon as Garcia hung up the phone. They'd gathered from the conversation that something bad had happened however they hadn't been able to put all of the pieces together.

"There was a bomb," Garcia said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Hotch, Reid and Don were caught in the blast."

Charlie's eyes widened in horror. "Were they. . ."

"Hotch and Don only suffered minor injuries," Garcia told them. "But Reid. . ."

"You mentioned Hope Memorial," Jareau said. "Is that where they're being taken?"

Garcia nodded, tears glistening in her eyes.

"Come on you guys," Jareau said. "We can be there in twenty minutes."

Jareau had hit the mark head on with her ETA and as soon as they arrived at the hospital she, Garcia, and Charlie led the way through the front door and into the emergency room waiting area.

"Hey guys," Morgan called out from a corner of the room.

"Derek!" Garcia exclaimed, running over to Morgan and throwing her arms around his neck.

"It's okay baby girl," Morgan whispered in a soothing voice, rubbing her back in a comforting manner.

"How's Reid?" Jareau asked Gideon who was sitting in a chair beside the spot where Morgan stood.

"He's still in the Emergency Room," Gideon told her.

Jareau nodded and sat down in the chair beside the senior profiler. Garcia gave Morgan one last squeeze before they both sat down. That left Charlie to pace.

About half an hour later Hotchner and Don joined the group out in the waiting room. Both had numerous butterfly bandages and Don had required six stitches to close a gash on his arm.

"Hey buddy," Don said to his brother, who was still pacing.

"Don," Charlie said.

"It's okay Charlie," Don said in a comforting tone of voice. "I'm fine."

"Have you guys heard anything about Reid?" Hotchner asked as he sat down across from Gideon.

Gideon shook his head.

At that moment a man dressed in a white lab coat with a stethoscope draped around his neck stepped into the waiting room. "I'm looking for the family of Spencer Reid."

Gideon immediately got to his feet, followed shortly thereafter by the rest of the BAU team.

The doctor surveyed the group, one eyebrow arched.

"We're from the FBI," Hotchner told the doctor. Gideon came to stand beside his colleague and added, "We may not be related to Spencer by blood but we are his family."

The doctor nodded and offered Gideon his hand. "I'm Dr. Grayson Holmes and I'm the one who treated Spencer in the ER."

Gideon accepted the doctor's hand and shook it. "How is Spencer?"

"The young man suffered a mild concussion as well as three broken ribs, one of which punctured his right lung," Dr. Holmes replied. "I inserted a chest tube to re-inflate his collapsed lung and he's now on a ventilator to help him breath. Now all we can do is wait."

"Can we see him?" Morgan asked.

Dr. Holmes debated the question for a moment before he nodded. "He's in Intensive Care so you can only go in two at a time but yea you can see him."

"Thank you," Gideon said.

Dr. Holmes nodded. "If you'll follow me I'll take you up to your friend's room."

Everyone nodded as they fell into step behind the ER doctor. Dr. Holmes led the way up to the third floor and into the Intensive Care Unit. "Your friend's in room six. Don't stay too long."

They all nodded and watched as the doctor left.

"Who's going in first?" Gideon asked the group.

"You and Hotch should go in first," Morgan said, gesturing toward the doors that led into the ICU.

Gideon glanced around at the others and, after receiving nods of agreement from everyone, he nodded. "Alright."

Together the two leaders of the BAU entered the Intensive Care Unit and slowly made their way back to Reid's room. When they stepped inside they saw their young colleague lying in bed, his face pale and a blue tube taped to his mouth.

"Spencer," Gideon said in a soft voice as he stepped over to the side of Reid's bed and picked up the young agent's hand. "If you can hear me, squeeze my hand."

Gideon waited, his gaze focused on the pale hand that he held, however Reid remained motionless.

"He'll be okay Jason," Hotchner told the older profiler.

"I know," Gideon said with a nod. Then he turned his attention back to Reid. "Listen Spencer, everyone's here so we're going to leave now so someone else can come see you." And with one last look at Reid's pale face he and Hotchner left the room. When they returned to the spot where the others were waiting Jareau and Prentiss went through the double doors into the ICU.

"Guys," Garcia said quietly. "Someone should probably call Lyssa and tell her that Reid was hurt."

"I'll do it," Charlie volunteered, walking away from the group.

"Hey Charlie!" Don called out as his brother walked down the corridor toward the elevator. Charlie paused and Don jogged over to him. "Listen buddy," he said in a quiet voice. "Don't tell her about the terrorists okay?"

"I got you," Charlie said. "That's on a need to know basis and she doesn't need to known. Right?"

"Something like that," Don said with a nod.

Charlie shrugged and continued on his way toward the elevator. The mathematics professor made his way outside where he pulled out his cell phone. "Good thing Reid used my phone to call her the other day," Charlie muttered to himself as he scanned 'dialed calls' for the one number that he wasn't familiar with. Then, when he found the number, he hit redial and listened to the phone ring.

"Hello?" The voice on the other side of the line sounded confused.

"Lyssa, it's Charlie."

"Hey Charlie." Still confused. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Listen to me Lyssa. I just called to let you know that Spencer's in the hospital."

Silence.

"Lyssa. . . are you there?"

"I'm here. What happened to him Charlie? Is he okay?"

Charlie hesitated. "He's in stable condition but I don't think I'm really the best person to answer that other question. You should talk to one of the BAU agents."

"Of course. Let me guess, it's on a need to know basis and I don't need to know."

"I'm sorry Lyssa. I'd tell you if I could."

"Don't worry about it Charlie. I know it's not your fault and I'm not mad at you. Can you at least tell me what hospital he's in?"

"Hope Memorial."

"Thanks. I'll be there as soon as I can."

With that the line went dead. Charlie sighed as he turned his phone off and placed it back in his pocket. "I hope I never have to do that again."

When Jareau and Prentiss came back out into the hallway Morgan took Garcia by the hand. "Come on. Let's go see our boy."

Garcia nodded and allowed Morgan to lead her through the double doors and down the small hallway to Reid's room. "Hey sweet boy," she whispered as she and Morgan came to stand at his bedside.

There were tears glistening in Garcia's eyes as she stared down at Reid and Morgan leaned over the young man's bed. "Listen to me boy genius," he whispered. "You're making my girl cry so you'd best snap out of this if you know what's good for you."

This said Morgan wrapped a comforting arm around Garcia's shoulders. "He's going to be fine."

Garcia nodded as she placed her hand gently on top of Reid's.

"Come on," Morgan said gently.

Garcia touched her first two fingers to her lips and then placed them to Reid's forehead. Then she allowed Morgan to led her from the room, glancing back briefly before she left the room. When they rejoined the group assembled outside the ICU, Don turned to his younger brother. "Come on Charlie, let's go see your friend."

Charlie nodded and together he and Don entered the ICU and made their way to Reid's room.

After receiving the news about Reid from Charlie, Lyssa drove like a person possessed, and she made it to the hospital in record time. When she arrived at Hope Memorial she parked in the overnight parking area and ran into the hospital, sprinting all the way up to the front desk. "I'm looking for a patient named Spencer Reid. Can you please tell me where I can find him?"

The receptionist typed the name into her computer and, after a few moments, she replied, "ICU, third floor."

Lyssa turned and dashed toward the stairs, calling out "Thank you" over her shoulder as she ran.

When Lyssa arrived on the third floor, slightly out of breath, she found Reid's friend's assembled in front of the double doors that led into the ICU. "How is he?" she asked as she came to a stop in front of the group.

"He's stable," Gideon replied in his calm, soothing manner.

Charlie offered the distraught young woman his hand. "Come on Lyssa and I'll take you back to see him."

Lyssa nodded and accepted his hand. Together the two of them entered the ICU and Charlie led the way back to Reid's room.

"Oh my God!" Lyssa exclaimed as her gaze fell upon Reid. She rushed over to his side and picked up his hand. "Hey Spence, it's Lyssa. Listen if you can hear me squeeze my hand."

Lyssa waited, gazing at the hand that she held in her own, but nothing happened. "Dammit Spencer, if you know what's good for you, you'll wake up."

Charlie walked over to Lyssa and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. The young woman immediately turned around and gazed up at him, her blue eyes filled with unshed tears. "Didn't really think that would work," she managed to choke out. "He's so stubborn."

"He's going to be fine," Charlie told her. "You have to trust me on this."

Lyssa nodded her gaze once again shifting to Reid.

TBC. . .