Escalation
Chapter 4
Degradation

A/N warning AH/OMC noncon warning warning

"Rape does not just destroy the will, it tears apart the very soul." Marvella Briscoe

'A courier just brought this in for you, Agent Rossi.' Abrams said, handing Dave an envelope.

Dave opened the envelope carefully and tipped the contents onto the desk.

'Oh my god!' the detective said. 'Is that....?'

Dave carefully slid them back into the envelope. 'Yes it is. Get copies made, and send these to your lab. Is the courier still here?'

Dave was running now to the front of the police station. But of course the courier had gone. Abrams rushed past him to the copier, and slipping gloves on, he removed the photos one at a time and copied them. He handed the copies to Dave.

Dave went back to the evidence board where Emily and Morgan were working on the map.

'We have more evidence.' Dave said, and handed the copies to Morgan.

The pictures were blow ups of Hotch after he had been beaten. Emily put her hand over her mouth. Morgan quietly put the pictures on the board.

'Only Hotch? None of Reid?'

'That's all we were sent.' Dave said.

'What is the point of it though? Just to taunt us?'

'I doubt the unsubs would have done this just to taunt. I think we will be getting more correspondence very soon.

-0-0-0-

Hotch's eyes were swollen and caked with blood. He reached up to them with shakey hands and tried to wipe the blood away. It had congealed and was sticky and thick. He tried again to open them, and managed to open them just enough to realise that there was no light. He could remember there being windows around the top of the walls letting in a little light, so it was night time again, a whole day since he left the precinct. Painfully he crawled to the corner where he had been sitting when the men came and beat him up. He couldn't sit, he had been kicked too many times on the base of his spine, so he lay on his side to think about what he could do.

It didn't take long to realise that there was nothing that he could do. There were at least four of them, and he was still tied at the wrists; they had made sure that it was not possible for him to climb up to the windows or run.

He bit at the rope to try to free himself, but the knots were tight and all his efforts achieved nothing.

He just had to wait. And he didn't have to wait long.

The door swung open and the four men came down the steps.

Again without a word, they descended on him, but this time, they didn't hit him. They dragged him out into the middle of the room and pulled at his clothes. Hotch fought to get them off, but it was a waste of energy.

When they had stripped him, They stuffed his mouth with paper and taped it in place, three of them held him down. They turned him onto his front, and one man held his wrists above his head. Two others held his legs. The fourth one raped him. Hotch wanted to scream, the pain was so bad, but the gag prevented all but a faint whimper as the man entered him and forced himself on the defenceless man. Hotch tautened his muscles in an attempt to prevent the rape, but his vain efforts just made them laugh. Hotch felt the blood well up as the agony intensified. The UnSub held handfuls of his hair as he forced himself into him again and again, until he was spent, and he collapsed onto Hotch's back exhausted.

But things had only just started for Hotch. There were four of them.

By the time the fourth man had finished with him, Hotch was semi conscious, and beyond any kind of fight. They left him naked, cold and bleeding on the floor of the cellar and went back up the steps, arguing over who was to be first next time.

The clotting blood in Hotch's eyes washed away by the tears.

-0-0-0-

'I want every inch of that road searched.' Dave said. Garcia had told him where Hotch had been going. Now they knew where to look. Emily Morgan and Dave took an SUV and drove slowly along Highway Ten to the Montford Motel. Hotch's car wasn't in the parking lot. They went into the reception.

'We are looking for this man.' Dave said, pushing a photo of Hotch across the counter. 'He would have been here last evening. Was he here?'

The man looked at the picture. 'No, I don't recognise him. What car was he driving?'

'It would have been a black SUV.' Morgan said.

'No I'm pretty sure he wasn't here.' the man said. 'I would have remembered an SUV. We don't get many visitors this time of year.'

Dave thanked him and the left the little office.

'So Hotch and Reid didn't make it as far as here. We need to search the road.'

They drove back slowly, checking all the car pull ins along the way, but there was no sign of the SUV.

'Could it have gone off the road?' Emily asked. 'It was good driving conditions, and Hotch is the best driver I know. But there is always a chance.'

'We'll never be able to search the road in the dark.' Dave said. the sky was firey red as the sun went down. 'We'll wait until first light, then get a search under way.'

As Emily Morgan and Dave drove back to the precinct, Dave's cell phone rang. Morgan answered it and put it on speaker.

'We have another letter from the kidnappers.' It was Abrams. 'They want an exchange of prisoners. They want Curtis back and we get your Agent.'

Dave didn't need to think about it. 'We cannot enter into a negotiation with the UnSub.' he said straight away.

Hotch would understand. It wasn't something that could be discussed. It was bureau policy.

Even if it was to cost Hotch his life ....... which it very possibly would.

They drove the rest of the way back in silence. Each knew in their hearts what that had cost for Dave to say that. He and Hotch were close friends.

'It is significant that they only said 'Agent'.' Dave said. 'So thy only have one of our men.'

'So where is Reid?' Morgan frowned.

-0-0-0-

Reid woke up with a raging thirst. The sun had gone down, and it wasn't so hot anymore. His hair was dry now and blood stuck it across his face and neck. He peeled it back with trembling hands. His legs were almost totally numb now, but his back and neck were hurting where he had suffered whip lash in the accident. He was only just starting to feel it because his legs were hurting too bad before. He realised to his dismay that the cell phones had gone, and so had his ID. Someone had been there and not helped him.

He wondered about Hotch. Was he somewhere out there dead? Had he started out to get help, and died? Had he been abducted? It suddenly occurred to him that he could be trapped under the car, having been thrown out in the accident.

'Hotch....' he whispered hoarsely. 'Someone, please....'

-0-0-0-

Hotch was finding breathing to be difficult. He thought his nose could be broken, and his mouth was stuffed with paper. When Hotch could move again, he peeled the tape from his mouth and pulled the paper from between his teeth. It was a relief that he could now breathe. But broken ribs added to the anguish he felt.

He wondered about Reid .... had they found him yet? Was he safe?

He tensed as he heard the door open again.

The four men walked down the steps and crossed towards him. One carried a bottle of water and another a bowl of something. So they were going to feed him? That was something at least.

Hotch moaned softly as they pulled him into a sitting position and began to spoon feed him something. Hotch gagged on it. It had the consistency of porridge, but it was cold and watery and tasted disgusting. One man held his head still by his hair and the other shoved the food into his mouth. Hotch choked and tried to swallow, but he gagged again and threw it up onto the floor. He tried to close his mouth but one of the men forced it open. Hotch kicked out with his feet to try to push his attackers away, but they were strong, and Hotch was weak after the assault, and he could do nothing to stop the men from doing to him whatever they wanted. They didn't stop forcing the food into his mouth though, and Hotch was left coughing and gagging on the floor. They left him the water and went back up the steps and out of the room.

With shaking hands, Hotch picked up the bottle and washed his mouth out, and then he lay back down again, exhausted after the battle. He shivered on the damp concrete floor, and wondered how much more of this he could take.

He was still losing blood, and it was dark against his pale skin. He was lying in blood and mess when they returned. Again they pulled him into the middle of the room and took turns to rape him. He had little strength to resist, and when he did manage to twist onto his back, it earned him a punch in the mouth. He felt his lips split and teeth crack, but he couldn't lie passively as they stripped him of his dignity and manhood. So he fought against it, and was beaten in return. When they had all had their turn they kicked him unconscious, laughing at him, jeering his weakness, and left him eventually in his own mess on the floor.

-0-0-0-

As they walked back into the precinct office, Abrams came over to meet them.

'We have just heard there has been some activity on one of your missing agent's credit cards.' He glanced down at the paper he was holding. 'Spencer Reid. The user is being held by store security.'

Dave took the paper from Abrams. The card had been used to attempt to buy dvd's in a large local store. These men might be accomplished kidnappers and rapists, but they didn't know much about credit cards.

The agents and Abrams went back to the SUV and drove to the store. It was late night opening and the store was crowded with youngsters. In the back office, they were introduced to Ricky Bate who had tried to use the card.

'Where did you get the card, Bate?' Dave said.

'I b-bought it off a kid.' Bate answered, clearly terrified. 'He hangs around at the gym.'

'Come with us.' Morgan said, 'and point him out to us.'

'No can do, I ain't no grass.'

'This card belongs to a missing federal agent.' Morgan said, nose to nose with the boy. 'Unless you want to go down for kidnapping, rape and murder, you had better show us.'

Bate looked really frightened, and nodded mutely. He was cuffed and taken to the gym where he pointed out a boy of about thirteen who was hanging around talking to the older ones.

'He sold me the card.' Bate said.

'There. That wasn't so hard now was it?' Morgan said, and leaving Bate to be processed by Abrams, Morgan went to talk to the boy.

'Where did you get the credit card that you sold to Ricky Bate?'

'I don't know anyone called Ricky Bate.' the youngster answered with a scowl.

'I am arresting you', Morgan said, twisting the kid's arms behind his back, 'for kidnapping and murder. Anything you say......'

'Ok! Ok! I'll tell you. I stole it off a dead guy in a car wreck up off Highway Ten. He was already dead. I didn't kill him!'

A dead guy? Reid?

'Show me.' Morgan said, and pulled the youngster back to the car. He opened the back door and pushed the kid in next to Bate and Abrams.