Disclaimer- I do not own CBS or Criminal Minds or NUMB3RS either for that matter.
HOPE MEMORIAL MEDICAL CENTER
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 12
All the members of the BAU, along with Don's team, Charlie and Lyssa, remained at the hospital that night, keeping vigil over Reid, however the young man's condition did not change. Most of the group sat together in the ICU waiting room, talking quietly amongst themselves, however Lyssa sat alone in a far corner. The young woman held her head in her hands and rocked back and forth.
Gideon noticed this behavior and, even though he was enduring his own personal hell, his compassion for others won out and he got to his feet and walked over to her. "Lyssa. . ." he spoke in a quiet voice.
"This isn't right," Lyssa mumbled as Gideon sat down in a chair beside her. "This shouldn't have happened to Spencer."
"This shouldn't ever happen to anyone," Gideon told her, thinking back on all the horrible things that he'd seen since he'd joined the Bureau.
"I know that," Lyssa said. "It's just. . . this is so hard. And on top of everything else. . ."
"Spencer mentioned that he was concerned about you," Gideon said, leaning forward slightly in his chair. "Is there anything you'd like to talk about?"
"Look, I appreciate your concern," Lyssa said, making and holding eye contact with the veteran profiler. "I really do but I know what I have to do now. All I need is for Spencer to wake up so that I can tell him."
"Alright," Gideon said. "But if you decide that you want to talk, I'll listen."
"Thank you," Lyssa said quietly. "You know, I think I'm gonna go out and get some air. I'll be back in a little while."
This said Lyssa got to her feet and left the waiting room. With a sigh Gideon got up and rejoined his colleagues on the other side of the room.
"Is she okay?" Charlie asked the senior profiler as he sat down.
"I don't know," Gideon replied honestly. "I'm having a hard time reading her. There's definitely something wrong but considering the circumstances. . . "
Charlie nodded his head in understanding.
"You know guys I've been thinking," Morgan said after a few minutes, breaking the silence that had fallen over the group. "And I think this whole thing was a set up."
Hotchner's attention was immediately focused on his subordinate, who'd appeared to be lost in thought for the last couple of hours and who seemed to have decided that Lyssa's departure was the perfect moment to speak his mind.
"I think the terrorists leaked that intel to us on purpose," Morgan continued. "I think they knew that we were on their trail and they fed us the information and lured us into a trap."
"I think you're right," Don said, a thoughtful expression on his face. "And I think we were damn close to finding their target. We need to get back on this."
Hotchner nodded his head in agreement. "We owe it to Reid to find the people responsible for this."
"But someone has to stay here," Garcia said, turning pleading eyes to the rest of the group. "In case. . ."
Garcia didn't finish her statement but they all knew what she meant. Someone needed to remain at the hospital in case Reid's condition changed, be it for better or for worse.
"I'll stay," Gideon said.
"Are you sure Jason?" Hotchner asked, his gaze focused on the older agent who was still visibly shaken by this whole ordeal. Hotchner could practically see the images of Boston, as well as the attack of the previous day, replaying in the old profiler's mind.
"I'm fine Hotch," Gideon assured the younger profiler. "You guys go back and find the people responsible for this. I'll stay here and keep an eye on Spencer."
"Alright," Hotchner said. "Call us if there's any change."
Gideon nodded and watched as they all got to their feet and left the waiting room.
As the group of FBI agents left the hospital they ran into Lyssa, who was sitting on a bench just outside the emergency room entrance. The young woman looked up as they walked past. "Where are you guys going?" she asked, a curious look in her blue eyes.
"Back to HQ," Hotchner replied. "We have a case to work on."
"So you're just gonna leave?" Lyssa said, glaring at the group of FBI agents. "Spencer's lying up there, maybe dying, and you guys are just gonna go back to work? How can you do that? How can you just leave him?"
"Listen," Morgan said, slightly offended that she thought that they didn't care about Reid. "We're all worried about our boy but if we don't solve this case then there's a good possibility that more people are going to get hurt."
"I'm sorry," Lyssa said, realizing that she'd offended him and probably the others as well. "I didn't mean. . ."
"It's okay," Morgan said. "I know you're stressed so don't worry about it."
Lyssa nodded and offered him a somewhat forced smile.
"We have to go," Hotchner said. "We'll see you later."
Lyssa nodded once more and watched as the group of FBI agents, as well as Charlie, walked toward the parking lot.
Not long after Hotchner and the others left, Lyssa made her way back up to the waiting room and as she walked down a deserted corridor she thought about Reid. A picture of him lying in that bed upstairs, on a ventilator, flashed in Lyssa's mind and threatened to make her lose her resolve.
"No," Lyssa thought to herself as she walked over to the elevator. "I've made my decision and it's better this way."
Lyssa rode the elevator back up to the third floor and as she reentered the waiting room she saw that Gideon was reading a magazine. Slightly curious Lyssa walked over to him. "What are you reading?"
"It's a magazine about British wild birds," Gideon replied, momentarily ceasing his reading to gaze up at her and holding up the magazine so that she could see the cover.
"I see," Lyssa said, sitting down beside him. "So you like birds huh?"
Gideon nodded. "When you see the things that we see every day you need something that takes your mind off of the horror."
"That makes sense," Lyssa said in a soft voice, thinking about Gideon's words.
BAU HEADQUARTERS
LATER THAT DAY
When the group of FBI agents arrived back at HQ they quickly split into groups; Hotch, Morgan, Colby and Megan in one group, Don, David and Prentiss in the second and that left Garcia and Charlie in the last group.
"Come on Charlie," Garcia said, forcing herself to return to her normal, cheerful self. "We have work to do. We're gonna solve this one for Reid."
Charlie nodded and followed Garcia down to her office. Up until this point he'd been paired with Reid, just like the time before back in LA, and he felt out of place without his friend.
Garcia seemed to sense his emotional turmoil and she gazed at him, a concerned look in her eyes. "Are you alright Charlie?"
Charlie nodded as the two of them sat down in front of her computer however Garcia didn't look convinced. "I know you're lying Charlie. Tell me what's wrong. Please."
"I can't help but feel that what happened to Spencer was my fault," Charlie told her, a mixture of guilt and sadness on his face. "I led them all into a trap and Reid got hurt and they could have been killed. . ."
"Charlie," Garcia snapped, surprising the young man with the sharpness of her tone. "This is not your fault so you get those thoughts out of your head right now. The ones responsible for this, the ONLY ones responsible, are the people who planted that bomb. Do you understand me?"
Charlie nodded, a shocked expression on his face. He'd never seen this side of Garcia before.
"Good," Garcia said, snapping back to normal. "Now let's get to work."
Charlie nodded, grateful for the words of comfort, odd though they definitely were. He'd needed to hear someone, anyone, tell him that what had happened to his friend hadn't been his fault. He offered Garcia a small smile before the two of them got to work.
HOPE MEMORIAL MEDICAL CENTER
THAT NIGHT
Gideon and Lyssa were sitting in the ICU waiting room, in silence, when they heard the familiar sounds of people entering the room. Looking up they saw Charlie and Garcia, walking across the room toward them. Gideon gazed at the two, a questioning look in his eyes.
"Everyone's still at the office working on the case," Garcia told him in answer to the unasked question. "Hotch sent us to check on Reid as well as the two of you."
"And we brought dinner," Charlie added, holding up a brown paper bag.
"Thank you," Gideon said as Charlie placed the bag on the table that was positioned between his chair and the one in which Lyssa sat.
Lyssa glanced up at the clock and said in a quiet voice. "Thanks Charlie, maybe later. It's almost visiting hours."
Charlie nodded as she got to her feet. "I'll go with you to see him, if that's okay?"
Lyssa nodded and together she and Charlie left the waiting room. Once they were gone Garcia sat down in the chair that Lyssa had just vacated and stared over at her boss. "Are you holding up alright sir?"
Gideon's gaze went to Garcia, who had a concerned look in her eyes, and he offered her a smile. "It's not easy, I won't lie to you and tell you that it is, but Spencer's going to be just fine. And so am I."
Garcia nodded.
"Are you okay?" Gideon asked, concern in his voice.
"I'll be fine as soon as our boy wakes up," Garcia said, tears forming in her eyes but not falling.
As soon as visiting hours arrived Lyssa and Charlie pushed through the double doors and made their way back to Reid's room. When they entered the room they saw that Reid was in the same position as earlier, the only change was the fact that the bruises that discolored the young man's face were darker than they had been before.
"Hey Spence," Lyssa said, walking over to Reid's bedside and picking up his hand. "Listen, if you can hear me Spencer squeeze my hand."
Lyssa stared down at the hand that she held in her own, willing it to move, but nothing happened.
Charlie walked over to the other side of Reid's bed and picked up his other hand, being careful not to disturb any of the tubes and wires. "Spencer, it's Charlie. Listen buddy, you've got to snap out of this. Everyone's really worried."
When Charlie and Lyssa came back to the waiting room, Gideon and Garcia both got to their feet. The two pairs traded places at that point, Lyssa and Charlie sitting down to wait while Gideon and Garcia made their way back to the ICU. Following the same path that Lyssa and Charlie had taken earlier, Gideon and Garcia made their way back to Reid's room. They entered the room quietly and made their way over to the young man's bedside.
"Hey sweet boy," Garcia said in a whisper as she gazed down at the young man who was lying so still in the bed. "We're all here for you, I just wanted you to know that."
"Spencer," Gideon said as he picked up Reid's hand and held it in his own. "I want you to squeeze my hand. Come on Spencer, squeeze my hand."
A few minutes passed, during which nothing happened, and then Gideon leaned forward so that he could whisper in Reid's ear. "Spencer, squeeze my hand."
There was a twitch and then Gideon felt a gentle squeeze on his hand. "Good job Spencer, good job. Now I want you to open your eyes for me Spencer."
The young man's eyelids twitched slightly, as though he were trying to open them but was unable to.
"That's okay Spencer," Gideon told Reid. "You did good."
TBC. . .