Chapter 8

San Francisco International Airport
Private hangar

Morgan

They had to turn their phones off to land. Morgan's rang as soon as he turned it back on. "Okay, I have the appointment." Garcia said. "Is he okay? Is he completely blind? What happened?"

Morgan made it easy on everyone and put it on speaker. "I'm not blind Garcia." Spencer said. "Everything is just really blurry. It's like being without your glasses."

"So put your glasses on."

"They are on."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Hotch asked.

"I was hoping having my glasses back would resolve the issue, or at least substantially help." Spencer squinted at the world once more. "That does not appear to be the case."

Hotch gave Morgan and Rossi a look. They all knew that Spencer would have explained what happened by now if he could have without substantial emotional distress. "Can it be resolved?"

"Very likely. There are only three injuries that could have resulted from..." Yeah, Spencer was not going to be able to go there just yet. He took a deep breath. "My concern is that two would require surgical intervention."

"If that happens we are totally there for you!" Garcia said from the phone.

Rossi nodded his agreement with the others. "But let's hope for the third."

FBI Field Office
San Francisco, CA

Morgan always insisted later that he just happened to be standing close enough to hear when Alice Huntington and Spencer Reid found each other once more. "You're alive." Said the slender dark-haired woman as she stepped into Spencer's arms, her hands coming up to cup his face. Her voice was soft and husky, likely from damage from the fire, or from something that happened before. "You're going home."

"Thanks to you." Then he pulled her in tight, buried his face in her neck, and just breathed her for a while.

They weren't going anywhere. The remainder of the team left them there in the hallway. In the office Morgan spotted a familiar face. "Hey Seaver!"

Ashley Seaver beamed a smile back. "Hey stranger!" She accepted hugs from him and from Rossi and a handshake from Hotch.

"How's life in Andi's neighborhood?" Morgan asked.

"Great. Just closed a major case out here day before yesterday. I finished up the last of my paperwork this morning."

"Are you heading back today?" Rossi asked.

"I was, but then I was offered a ride on the BAU jet in exchange for a little...ummm..."

After a moment Rossi and Morgan got it. "Babysitting?" Rossi asked.

"I wasn't going to say that."

"We're shorthanded." Hotch said. "I need you both on interviews and Reid can't carry right now. So I looked for some help."

"Makes sense." Morgan nodded. With JJ and Kate on maternity and Spencer on the injured list they were very shorthanded, no question. "Baby girl should have him set up with a doctor's appointment today, get an injury looked at by a specialist."

"Not a problem." Seaver replied. "I'm glad to help out."

That settled they went to introduce themselves to the two men in the waiting area. The older was Latino, urbane, beaming a smile at the couple. The younger was hanging behind him but also all smiles. He was slender, Caucasian, and looked younger than his twenty-one years. A perfect fit for their victim profile. "Tomas Urquizo?" Hotch asked as he offered his hand. "I'm SSA Aaron Hotchner. I'm Dr. Reid's unit chief. Thank you for coming."

It was accepted with a nod and a smile. "Yes. Very nice to meet you. This is Joey Bauer." He indicated the younger man who ducked his head, shyly. "Anything we can do to help catch this monster, you know." He peered past Hotch to look at the two once more.

"Problem?" Hotch asked.

"Just the opposite. It's good to see her happy."

Hotch introduced Rossi, Morgan and Seaver. They collectively turned just as Morgan caught, "...kisses with lime custard." Alice was once again lightly caressing Spencer's jaw, and he looked to be about to melt into the cheap carpeting.

"Alice." Tomas called politely.

"Oh." She turned where she was and smiled to the group. "Of course."

Introductions were made. Morgan hung back to observe the body language. Alice was tired, worn, but she maintained a confident grace. Reminded him of Blake somehow, of all people. Hotch was his usual in-charge self. Ashley was patiently waiting. Joey Bauer read as shy, a little nervous, but he came all over eager when he met Spencer, like he wanted to crowd over and start talking. Tomas was more confident, a little deferential to Alice, suppressed Joey enough to keep him behind him. When he offered Spencer his hand he came across as pleased. And Spencer came across as nervous and excited. And there was something else, something that put Rossi's eyebrow up. "What?" Morgan murmured as Hotch led the group to a conference room.

"I should know better than to make assumptions." Rossi replied.

They settled in the conference room. "We need to interview each of you." Hotch said. "The information we gather will increase the odds of both stopping the Unsub and getting a conviction when we get there. But the first thing we need to know was where the house was located." The computer in the room pinged, Garcia came on in split screen and opened the connection to Station 7. "This is Sheriff Johnson from Manzanita County..."

"I remember." Alice said. "I voted for you."

Sheriff Johnson smiled. "Thank you." Introductions were made, then. "Did you head up river or down river?" Sheriff Johnson asked.

"Up river." Alice replied. "There was a window in the bathroom. I used to see the jetboats going by every day. I figured if I could get to their dock I'd find a phone. So I headed up river the way they'd come from to try to find them."

"Do you remember what the river looked like where you left?"

"There was an island..." Her eyes drifted closed in memory. "Up river was to my right, the island was on the left."

"How many curves did you go around?"

"Oh...I don't know."

"Did anything stand out?"

"There was this one point...I thought I went into a lake, but then I found the river again. We went through this canyon...it was all slick stone; the cliffs went right to the water. And it was very narrow."

"Hellmouth Canyon." The Sheriff nodded. "Did you pass any other island between the one where you left and the canyon?"

"No?"

"Was it a good sized island or just a little spit of sand?"

"A good sized island."

"Carpenter's island then. Just above Indian Riffle, on the south-west side of the river."

"I can find that." Garcia pulled up a satellite image showing a wide river and an island. And there on the south side was a large house hidden in the trees, down a short drive from the main road. "This was taken before the fire."

"Can you get a current picture?" Hotch asked.

"I can but it's all smoke." She replied.

"That's all right." Sheriff Johnson said. "We can find it now. Leave it to me."

"Thank you Sheriff."

"Not a problem. I've been looking forward to this one."

They signed off with the Sheriff and Hotch turned to the group. "All right. Morgan, why don't you interview Mr. Bauer, Rossi you take Ms. Huntington, Mr. Urquizo, you're with me."

Morgan moved off with the others. Time to get to work.