Chapter 10: A Tough Decision
Dr. Reid and Emily Prentiss looked over the photos of the crime scenes again and again, looking for patterns. Emily got fed up and put her head in her hands and said, " Ok, so, over thirty people dead, millions of crime scene photos and what have we got?"
" Well, he never dumps them in too much of an open area, even in Chicago, it was mainly alleys. New York has millions of them, so, it will be hard to watch them all", Dr. Reid explained.
" Ok, so, we are looking for a guy who likes to hang out in creepy alleyways and dumps bodies. Great, that narrows my search", Emily said sarcastically, " Are we ready for a profile yet?"
" Well, Hotch and Rossi might be the ones you want to ask about that one", Reid supposed. Emily knew it was bad when even Reid couldn't say something intelligent.
Don sat at his desk and thought about Nikki. He didn't want to think of the worst of the situation, but he couldn't help but wonder if she was alive. He thought about Danny and her, they were brother and sister, and Danny was so upset that he couldn't have done anything to stop Nikki from going to get coffee. They were one of those unlikely duos, but they were both jokesters and that was good. Don had always admired Danny for the way that he could laugh even after all they've seen. Don started to think about what Danny had said about Nikki saying that she didn't know if she'd ever get married. Don had no choice but to think that about himself. He had had girlfriends, but none that he could imagine marrying. He wondered if there was something wrong with him that he couldn't commit himself to anyone.
Lindsay sat in the break room wondering if the BAU had been able to create a profile, when Stella walked in and asked, " Hey, kiddo. How's he doing?"
" Oh, he's tossing and turning and talking in his sleep. And, when he's not sleeping, he's pacing", Lindsay yawned.
" Are you getting enough sleep Lindsay? I don't think that staying awake is a good thing for the baby", Stella asked, " Do you want to come and stay at my apartment for a night or two and catch up on some sleep?"
" No, Stell. I'm fine, thanks though. I don't want to leave Danny alone at this time. He's so worried, I don't want to have to leave him. He cries for Nikki in his sleep, and saying things like, " I shouldn't have left you alone" or " I hope you'll forgive me, Nikki". I hate seeing him like that, but I'm not leaving him alone. He needs to know that there's someone there", Lindsay explained.
Stella looked at the young woman with much admiration. After Frankie, Stella had never really recuperated enough to let herself find another guy. Stella looked at Lindsay and seen the determination and love for Danny in her eyes. She knew that Lindsay had made up her mind.
Don wrestled with his fears about Nikki. He had seen some bad stuff. He tried very hard not to imagine Nikki like that young fifteen year old girl whose name was Rebecca(Becky). She had been brutally tortured and mutilated by her ex-boyfriend, Jason. He turned onto his side and tried to forget about Becky.
Dr. Reid walked into the room that the BAU were allowed to set their stuff up in. He found Hotch sitting at the table with a file in front of him. Hotch looked up and asked, " What is it, Reid?"
" I have an idea", Reid responded.
" Ok, Reid. What is it?", Hotch asked again.
" Ok, well. The dump sites are all over the city, mainly though in alleyways. He wants them to be found, but not very quickly. We said that Nicole is the root of the unsub's anger, well, maybe the alleyway was a message to Nicole. She had to have meant something to him for him to dump them there. He's dangerous, Hotch. Now that he has the object of his anger, he's not gonna let her go", Reid said.
" Ok, Reid. So, what are you saying?", Hotch asked carefully, fully aware of the answer that he was going to get.
" Well, there's no way out for her. It's either we find her, or she will die", Reid concluded.
" Well, that's just wonderful. So, the alleyways mean something to him. They're a message to Nicole, but what's the message?", Hotch asked more to himself than to Dr. Reid.
As Mac sat in his office, his thoughts kept straying to Nikki's welfare. He hoped to God that she was alright. Although he'd never showed his emotional side to anyone except Claire, he couldn't help but want to tell someone of his fears. He had so many, but he didn't want his team to think that he was incapable of handling a situation.
Mac thought back to when Stella had been badly beaten by her boyfriend, Frankie. He had come close to snapping then. All his thoughts came back to Stella. She was someone who knew exactly what buttons to push and when to push them. She understood him better than anyone ever could. She was his best friend and partner, and he knew that no matter what happened, their friendship would always be there.
Danny and Lindsay sat at a table in the restaurant that they had their first real date in. It was a nice place. Comfy and cozy. Danny sat staring at a wall at the far end of the restaurant. The only reason he let Lindsay drag him here was because it was for the health of their baby. He let his eyes drop to her abdomen. Her pregnancy showed, but just barely. Lindsay caught sight of him looking at her abdomen and said, " Well, that's the first time you've looked away from the wall all the time we've been here."
" Yeah, sorry, Montana. I haven't slept well in the past few nights, you know that", Danny replied, taking one of her French fries.
" Well, at least you're eating, and talking", Lindsay remarked, knowing how bitchy that sounded, she added, "That's a good sign. You know, if you want to go back to the lab, you can. I know the only reason you came here was because of the baby. I'm your wife Danny. I know when something is wrong."
" No, I want to stay here, with you", Danny continued, " What would make you think that I wanted to go back to the lab?" It was a stupid question, and he knew the answer to it.
" It's no secret that you've been torn up about Nikki. Just go if you want to Danny, I'm not making a big thing about this alright. Just go!", Lindsay yelled, as she lowered her eyes down to her plate so Danny couldn't see the hot, stinging tears that were coming to her eyes. She choked back a sob and slowly took a sip of her water.
Danny looked at her and knew that she was going to cry. There was nothing he could do to comfort her, so he got up and walked out of the restaurant, then looked back to Lindsay and seen that her head was back up and that she was crying. He kept on walking, to where, he had no idea.
Nikki awoke with a start. She looked around. Nothing had changed, she wasn't dead, yet. Nikki realized that there was no way out for her. He wasn't going to let her walk free. Something wasn't right, Nikki could feel it. She looked around.
Julie suddenly whispered, " He's got Rebecca. He's going to kill her."
" Not if I can help it", Nikki whispered harshly. She sat up and held up her head. She wasn't going to let him get to her. She was going to save Rebecca and Julie. Even if it meant that she died doing it. Nikki accepted her fate, and started trying to get her hands free.
" What are you doing?", Julie whispered.
" I'm saving you and Rebecca", I replied.
" And yourself", Julie responded.
Nikki did not answer, she just kept trying to get her hands free. Julie felt the worst was going to happen. She wanted to say goodbye to her husband. Julie would stand by her new-found friend, and save all their lives.
" No, I'm saving you guys. He wants me, I'm not letting you guys come with me. You have your husband, and your baby to think about. Rebecca has her fiancé. I'm giving myself up. With luck, I can distract him long enough for you guys to get out. Start working on the binds on your hands", Nikki continued, " Don't waste time. Trust me."
Julie had tears in her eyes, and Nikki could see them. Nikki fought back the tears, and knew what she was doing was for the best. Rebecca was already free, it would be easier for her to run, but Julie needed to get out of her binds. They were tight and biting into her skin, but she fought against it. She saved half of her strength for what was to come. She was going down, and he would go with her, she would make sure of it. It was a life or death situation, in her case, and his, it would be the latter.
Danny walked and walked, and finally found himself at the place in the park that his parents had always taken him and Nikki when they were younger. He looked around and then sat down on the grass. Tears sprang from his eyes and he cried. He remembered playing tag and hide-and-seek here. The tears kept falling and he felt horrible for what he put Lindsay through. He couldn't forget her face after he left the restaurant, the waitress had come up and put an arm around his wife's shoulders.
He thought about turning around, going back, finding the bastard who kidnapped his sister, putting him away, if not killing him, and then telling his wife how much he loved her. He laid down in the grass and he kept crying, until he found a place where he rested for awhile.
When Lindsay had walked back into the lab without Danny, Flack came up to her, and asked, " Where's Danny?"
" How the hell should I know?", Lindsay fired back, then regretted it. " I'm sorry, Flack. I didn't mean that. Hormones", she lied.
" It's alright. I thought he left with you", Flack recalled.
" He did. But, he only came with me because of the baby. Look, I told him that he should come back here, he left, I cried. I don't know where he went though. I thought he was coming here", Lindsay murmured, hopelessly.
" I'll find him, Linds. Don't worry. He's probably walking it off, or maybe he's at home?", Don suggested.
" I don't know", Lindsay replied. She felt a slight twinge in her abdomen, and thought that it was just because she ate too much.