A/N: First of all, I'm really, truly sorry that it took me this long to update! (winces) It seems that my mind needed a break from this story for whatever the reason. So not cool. (groans)
THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart, for all those amazing reviews! (HUGS) Those were what gave me the final push it took to jump back on this story – without you this would've been dead and gone. So thank you!
Awkay… (takes a deep breath) I've kept you waiting for so long that it's a bit nerve-wrecking to introduce this new chapter for you. I really, TRULY hope that you'll enjoy the ride!
The Heartbeat
Two Weeks Later
Spencer had been in a lot of horrifying places and situations during his relatively short life. The one he ended up into that morning was, however, on the list of those situations he should've never been forced to face. He shivered when Dr. Alex Tenley smeared gel onto his stomach that seemed to be growing as he looked at it.
"I can see that you're still having a hard time with eating", Dr. Tenley commented, casting a glance towards his nearly withering frame. The man's eyes held a great deal of irritation. "I'm sure that you understand that soon enough we'll have no other choice but to put you on I.V once again. Your body can only handle so much."
Spencer shifted with discomfort and annoyance, feeling much too bare in front of the doctor. This was their third meeting. He should've remembered by now how blunt Dr. Tenley could be. "It doesn't matter how much I eat. It always takes more than I can offer." He swallowed and shuddered, another bout of nausea rising to his throat. "I eat as much as I can."
Dr. Tenley nodded slowly, clearly not liking his answer. "I see." The man took a tiny device Spencer couldn't recall seeing before and moved it on his abdomen. "Now, let's listen to what's going on."
For a moment there was nothing. The thing inside Spencer twisted and turned as though it'd been scared, trying to get away from the doctor. But then, so unexpectedly that both men shivered, the sound filled the room.
A furious, frantic thud. A heartbeat.
For the longest time neither man could speak. The thing's heartbeat was the only sound in the room until Dr. Tenley managed to speak. "Amazing…!" The man's eyes were slightly widened when they met his. "It's… It's five times faster than a human baby's. I've… never heard anything like this."
Then, just as suddenly as it'd been found, the sound disappeared when the thing shifted to a different position, in the process giving Spencer a kick that made him hiss with pain. Instinctively he brought a hand to the assaulted spot, not caring that the gel stained his fingers.
Dr. Tenley's eyes widened. The man wiped away the rest of the gel before voicing his thoughts. "I can see that it's taking a huge toll on your body. I know that you're against the thought of terminating it but if the natural course of things isn't disturbed it may end up killing the both of you. Your body won't be able to carry it to the term, whenever that is."
Spencer frowned, feeling much colder than before. The thing inside him became restless in an instant, began to claw its way out in a way that made him feel like he'd been torn to pieces. He winced and had to gather himself for a long time before the words came. "What… What are you suggesting?"
Dr. Tenley's face held something Spencer didn't quite manage to put his finger on. "The operation would be risky, for you and the thing. It's around and in the middle of several vital, delicate organs and I'm sure that you're aware of the risk of massive bleeding. But if the surgery would be done successfully it might end up saving both your lives." The doctor's eyes weren't reassuring. "We have a team of highly praised professionals in this hospital. If you'd give them the chance to they'd help you."
Spencer's eyes narrowed. "Haven't I made it clear that I don't want my case to be introduced to anyone else?"
Dr. Tenley's eyebrow bounced up. "Even if it'd be the only way to save you?"
Spencer gritted his teeth, pushing himself up much faster than his exhausted body would've been ready for. It took longer than he would've liked to put on his clothes. "I'll give it a thought", he muttered, his eyes on his stomach. He could see the movements even through a shirt. He shivered.
What the hell was he supposed to do?
"Good." Dr. Tenley sighed, then opened the door of his tiny cabinet and took a bottle of pills, offering it to him. "This should help with the nausea, to a point. Eat as much as you can and take your vitamins. For now that's pretty much all you can do."
Spencer nodded and accepted the bottle, futilely trying to relax his spasming muscles. The nightmare refused to end. In fact, he had a nasty feeling that it was only just getting started…
As soon as Spencer had left Dr. Tenley walked to a closet in the room's corner and slid away a piece of wood to reveal a tiny, empty space. He was pleased to see the video camera's red light blinking determinedly. With a satisfied look on his face he took the item and switched it off.
Whether Spencer liked it or not the young man was going to get him into places. He wouldn't let an opportunity like this go to waste.
All it would take was a tiny push…
A couple of days later a case took the team to Oregon. As per usual Spencer wasn't allowed to do any actual fieldwork and even so he was under constant surveillance. Staying at the station with nothing but maps and vague clues frustrated him beyond all belief but he also understood. There was no way he'd be up to fieldwork in his current condition. It was sheer luck that he was able to work at all, let alone fly. Aaron had already told him several times that soon enough he'd have to stay in Quantico with Penelope. As much as Spencer liked her he dreaded that time. Not being able to go with the others after he'd been shot had been a nightmare. Besides, what would he do when he'd have so much time to think about nasty things that were inevitably approaching in a hazy future? If he had any future at all?
Now, however, his thoughts were fully in the present. An hour ago their UnSub Isaiah Jones – a man of his age with unruly blond hair and piercing green eyes – had been brought in. So far they had no request for a lawyer but also no confession. All they had was a bunch of circumstantial evidence that wouldn't take them far in any courtroom. They had almost nothing but their profile against a man who'd taken five lives.
Watching Aaron interrogate Isaiah Derek growled, rubbing his neck with frustration. "That son of a bitch is playing with Hotch. How the hell are we supposed to nail him?"
Spencer stared and listened as what began as a barely distinguishable beat in his ears grew, became so sharp that it hurt. It took the longest time before he understood what it was and even longer to believe it.
Isaiah… It was his heartbeat. A much, much too fast heartbeat.
"Reid?" There was clearly visible worry in Derek's eyes when they examined him. "I still think that you should take a break. You look ready to pass out."
The words slipped out without Spencer having the slightest bit of control over them. "He's lying." The thing in his stomach shifted, as though giving its own twisted approval.
Snapshots flew through his head in a mad dash, making it spin.
Pictures of the victims… The videos of them being butchered… That sound in the background… He'd heard that sound before.
A wind chime.
He was moving much faster than Derek could even try to stop him. No matter how much his reason screamed against such a decision he made his way to the interrogation room's door and entered. In an instant Isaiah's eyes found his and time froze along with Spencer's blood.
There was a good reason why he'd been kept out of this UnSub's view. He fit the victimology perfectly. At the moment he felt like he'd jumped right into a lion's den.
Spencer barely noticed the frown of worry and disapproval Aaron gave him. All he could focus on was Isaiah. The man smirked. "You really do have tricks up your sleeve. I've gotta admit, though, that I like this one." The UnSub licked his lips, those eyes examining Spencer slowly from head to toe. "Why don't you come a little closer?"
Spencer had absolutely no intention of moving. All the way from where he stood he smelled the blood, the sweat. The sheer hormonal overload. "You killed them." There was no question or hesitation in his voice, nor was there accusation. "You drugged them so that they wouldn't put up too much of a fight but made sure that they were conscious right until the moment when they died. Were your wind chimes the last thing they heard?"
Isaiah smiled but something in the man's eyes chilled him. "You have a wild imagination." Spencer heard the man's frantic heartbeat so clearly that it hurt.
Spencer knew full well that he was quite possibly making a mistake but he also saw a clear opening. That's why he moved despite the look and frown of protest he received from Aaron. The thing inside him was practically hissing while he walked towards Isaiah, never once looking away from the man's eyes. "So do you", he commented, tilting his head slightly. The thing in his stomach took over, urged him to go on. He could feel the bloodthirst rising and was shocked by the fact that it didn't scare him at all. "I can see you imagine all the things you'd do to me. I can see how you picture your knife inside me."
Isaiah stared into his eyes. The resolve broke. "They screamed, you know? They screamed, and my God it sounded beautiful." The man licked his lips, a cloudy look appearing to his face. "I'm sure that you would've sounded wonderful, Spencer."
Spencer's eyes widened, this time reacting to his own emotions, and flew towards Aaron. In a flash he received the confirmation he'd been looking for. The team had refused to show him some of the pictures they'd found, amongst those taken of the victims. Now he understood why. They'd been of him. He would've been the next victim.
He barely noticed how Isaiah was taken away, didn't hear the words the disturbed man whispered to him. Nor did he feel Aaron's hand on his shoulder or hear the man asking if he was alright. All he managed to do was run.
Spencer barely made it to the toilet before he already threw up violently. He tried to pretend that he didn't notice the couple of ominous red stripes in the vomit.
Dr. Lucas Castro woke up from his light slumber to the distant sound of his cell phone buzzing on a silent mode. A frown appeared to his face when he took the item and gave it a look. Pleasant shivers went through him as soon as he noticed who the message was from.
Spencer Reid.
'It's getting out of control. I need your help.'
His eyes moved towards the naked woman who slept beside him, her back towards him. She'd come all the way to him to make sure that he wouldn't harm Spencer just to fulfill his goals. He'd already feared that this chance would never come.
His eyes flashed while he texted back.
'Come to me as soon as you can. And make sure that you're alone this time.'
The thing inside Spencer was the only way to get to a being that'd caused a lot of pain, terror and devastation. If Spencer would have to die just to make sure that a lot of more people stayed alive… Then so be it.
Two hours after Spencer entered the interrogation room Derek was still shaking. His mind was spinning as he tried to bring some sense to what happened. His eyes never strayed from Spencer's form that lay on the couch of the police station's break room.
They'd managed to keep Isaiah from getting to the genius but the worst was nowhere near over. Derek could only watch as the person who'd become a brother to him grew more and more exhausted under the force of something that'd been forced violently into his body. Just like he'd stood back and watched so many fucking times before.
He tensed up upon hearing steps and didn't manage to relax even when Aaron spoke. "How is he?" the unit chief inquired.
Derek shook his head. How the hell was he supposed to answer that one? In the end he resulted to honesty. "I don't know."
Aaron sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. For a moment the man appeared old beyond his years "I'm not going to let him travel anymore. I've allowed it this far because this seems like the only thing that keeps his mind… occupied. But I'm not planning on risking his health any further."
Derek nodded. Truth be told, having Spencer safely home with Penelope sounded like a damn good idea. But he was no fool. He knew that it was only a temporary bandaid to a open wound. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked at the bulge that was visible when Spencer's shirt shifted a little bit. Was it… moving? Even in sleep the young genius appeared to be in pain. "We don't have a lot of time, Hotch. It's only a few weeks before that… thing wants to pop out. How the hell are we going to get rid of it before it kills him?"
Aaron's eyes darkened. Derek couldn't recall several occasions when he would've seen that look on the unit chief's face. "I don't know." He could tell it killed Aaron to say those words.
They both shivered a little when Aaron's cell phone began to ring all of a sudden. The unit chief was quick to leave the room before disturbing Spencer's much needed rest.
Derek refocused on Spencer, pleased to discover that his friend was still asleep. Not exactly soundly but still. At that very moment he noticed something. A bottle of pills that was just visible from Spencer's bag.
Making sure that the genius was asleep he made his way to the bottle and examined it. In a few moments a frown rose to his face. As quickly as he could he opened the bottle, took two pills and left the room soundlessly, like he'd never even been there.
As soon as he made it to a safe distance he took his cell phone and dialed numbers. The answer took quite a while. "Hey Tawny. It's Derek."
A growl was his first greeting. "You've got some nerve to call me again", she snarled.
He winced. "Don't hang up, please. I… sort of need a favor."
"You didn't get enough the first time around, after all?" It was impossible to tell if she sounded eager or ready to kill.
His cheeks heated up a little bit. "Not that kind of a favor." He glanced towards the pills. "A friend of mine's in a trouble. Do you think you could examine a couple of pills in your lab?"
Alone in the room, Spencer's dreams were far from pleasant.
Once again he dreamt of death. Of blood. The thirst was so great that he feared it might suffocate him. The chirping that wrapped around him was deafening while he stared into the wide, horrified eyes.
Only this time they weren't the eyes of a stranger. They were Derek's. His eyes watched helplessly while his unnaturally long nails worked their way on the man's already tormented body. Blood was everywhere, spilled to Derek's lips when the man tried to cry out.
The human inside Spencer screamed, howled, sobbed. 'Please…! Please, don't…!'
But the thing wouldn't listen. The nails moved before Spencer's own mind could to do a thing to stop it. Derek unleashed a one last, wet gurgle when his windpipe was slashed, then slumped to the floor with his eyes gaining a sickening, glassy look.
Numbed by such grief, terror and anguish he'd never experienced before Spencer allowed his eyes to sweep through the room. What he saw made absolutely everything inside him shatter to tiny, sharp pieces.
Aaron and David lay close to the doorway, their bodies twisted to unnatural, impossible angles. Their skins appeared greyish – it was safe to assume that they'd died first. Emily wasn't far from them. There were marks of self defense all over her. She'd put up a great fight but ended up losing. She was the bloodiest one out of them. It seemed that Penelope had attempted to get away and almost succeeded. Her body was slumped close to the emergency exit, one of her hands still reaching out towards the doorhandle. The scent of her blood was thick in the air. She couldn't have been dead for long.
Then, just as Spencer thought that it couldn't get any worse, he heard steps. In exactly three seconds JJ stood by the room's doorway. Her eyes widened while a scream escaped through her lips.
Spencer screamed as well, out of such pain that couldn't be explained with words. It was the scream that awakened him. The thing inside him kept kicking and punching, obviously scared, while he struggled to get his breathing and heartbeat back into control. Tears ran wildly down his cheeks while he hyperventilated, still firmly in the dream's grasp.
A dream. Just a dream. Nothing more. A dream. A sick, twisted nightmare. His friends were still alive and in one piece, every single one of them.
Unleashing a pitiable, heartbreaking whimper Spencer inhaled sharply. That's when his nose caught a scent that shouldn't have been present now that he was awake. Was he still half asleep or…?
No. There was something warm and sticky running from his nose.
With a frown Spencer raised a hand and wiped the skin underneath his nose, then gave his fingers a look. A shudder crossed him.
His fingers and the back of his hand were covered in blood.
TBC, OR NOT?
A/N: Ugh… (winces) It seems that carrying the thing is getting harder and harder for Reid. The poor thing!
PLEASE, leave a note! Now that this story is getting revived it'd seriously mean the world to me. Let me know if this chapter was worth all the waiting. (gives puppy's eyes)
IN THE NEXT ONE (if you're still up to more, of course): Reid's body has just about reached the limit when it comes to carrying the baby and he's forced to make a huge decision. Which of the unreliable doctors does he end up trusting – and will it be a mistake? The appearance of a unexpected person twists things once more.
There'd be four more to go.
Until next time, folks, with whichever story that'll be!
Take care!
Ravenette: Awww, I'm really relieved to hear that. (beams) 'Hope that next one turns out that way as well.
Massive thank yous for the review!
Morning Glory: Indeed! (shudders) Let's hope that he makes it through this one in at least relatively one piece.
Colossal thank yous for the review!
Frustrated: It took me AGES to update this one, didn't it? I'm so sorry about it, but my head just tilted. For the longest time I couldn't write a word of this story. (winces) BUT, this story IS going to finished. There's no way I'd allow it otherwise.
I hope that you're still tuned in for more, and find the next one worth the wait.
Huge thank yous for the review and shaking me back to the typing mode!
