Chapter 12: Impression
Reid immediately went to the coffeemaker when he stepped into the briefing room. Everyone else was filtering in quietly. Hotch gave him a reassuring nod and Reid returned a quiet smile. After fixing up his cup he made sure to sit down next to Hotch before everyone could get settled as if he still needed him for the support he had provided on Saturday night. He was unsure of himself this morning to say the least. Morgan took a seat across the table and Reid tried to flash a smile in his direction, but he didn't notice. Reid felt even more discouraged so he settled his attention on watching Hotch's hands as the man made some notes inside of a file he had in front of him.
When Reid saw movement out of the corner of his tired eye, he looked back to Morgan who had suddenly pulled out his phone. Reid's breath hitched in his throat as he watched, but Morgan only seemed to press a couple buttons and then clipped it to his belt again. He must know that I called. Did he listen to my message? Reid couldn't tell because Morgan hadn't even bothered to look his direction yet. He sadly frog faced and set it all aside so he could focus on helping his team solve this case.
Toward the end of the briefing, Hotch decided to take a chance. "Morgan, you and Reid head over to the gym and see if anyone there can provide any further detail on the victims."
Reid and Morgan looked at each other and both looked right back to Hotch for confirmation. When Hotch nodded, the two love birds looked at each other again. For Reid, everything else seemed to fade away into the background as he waited for Morgan to decline and asked to be partnered up with someone else. Why wouldn't he? But Morgan's expression didn't really change. Reid couldn't tell if he was still upset or not.
"Yeah, sure." His eyes moved from Hotch back to Reid again. "You ready, kid?"
"Yes," he answered as he happily soaked in the fact that he hadn't been rejected and that he'd be with Morgan all day, even if that meant Morgan may not want to talk. Reid stood and wrapped his satchel strap around his neck and shoulder and wondered why Morgan wasn't getting up yet. His eyes followed Morgan's and they both stared at JJ who was on a phone call as she stood next to the couch. Reid thought back to the conversation in the room while he watching Morgan so closely. JJ was to accompany them. Was it Hotch's intention for her to be a chaperone of sorts? Reid slowly sat back down. I guess that's okay. She knows… Who doesn't by now?
JJ glanced over her shoulder at Morgan and Reid, feeling their eyes, and put her hand over the speaker of her phone. "You two go ahead. I'll catch up. I'm gonna be a little bit."
Both men pushed their chairs out at the same time and Reid followed Morgan out of the room. They walked through the BAU and to the elevator without speaking.
On their way through the parking garage, Morgan finally spoke. "What do ya bet this unsub works at the gym, takes these men home, beds them, or you know, if not, at least teases them until they're putty in her hands and then slits their throats? Man, what a way to go…"
"Or shoots or stabs them. She's still learning what her preference is," Reid smiled nervously, feeling enthusiastic just to have a conversation with Morgan. It reminded him so much of when they started their relationship nearly two years ago and how rocky things were in the beginning. He quickly thought of something else to talk about to keep the conversation going. "She's very careful; zero evidence of DNA left behind."
"Maybe she cleans the bodies?"
"What- What if we've got the profile wrong and this person is man?"
Morgan frowned as he pointed the keyless remote at the SUV. "Then we're wrong." They stopped by the rear gate of the vehicle before finishing the conversation.
"I know, but then we'll need to—"
"Reid, you act like we don't do this for a living. We'll revisit the profile if we need to. Right now, all indicators point to a female unsub. You were the first to agree with the local PD. Why are you doubting this now?"
Reid gulped and he avoided making eye contact with his friend. "I'm not. I'm just... I don't know…Throwing it out there?" He didn't want to admit he just wanted to Morgan to talk to him.
Morgan squinted at Reid and said, "Come on, Pretty Boy. We got a schedule to keep." He glanced at his watch as he rounded the vehicle to get inside.
Reid landed in his seat at the same moment Morgan got into his and he smiled to himself just a little when they simultaneously closed their doors. "Are we waiting for JJ or is she driving herself?" he asked.
"I dunno," Morgan responded as he flipped his phone open and dialed out to reach her.
Reid thought back to his meltdown and realized how good he felt today. It was like a very heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders even though nothing had gone his way. But he sat quietly, tentatively, and thought about how this day could go. Maybe Morgan didn't mean what he said and that they're still 'together'. Reid frowned. Or maybe Morgan was going to ignore the subject all day.
When Morgan hung up the phone, Reid finally had to say something to find out where Morgan's head was at. "Is she coming?" Okay, that wasn't really what he meant to ask. He gritted his teeth as he listened to Morgan's reply.
"Yeah, she's on her way down."
"Did you get my phone call this morning?" he asked, nearly cutting Morgan off.
Morgan's lips tightened and his line of sight dropped to the steering wheel. "Reid…" he began. He visibly took a very deep breath before he continued, "Just tell me why?" He paused again and looked out the windows behind him using the rear view mirror. "Tell me why you're stalling. Maybe I can understand and you won't come off like such an asshole." Reid didn't say anything right away and it was obvious he was contemplating if he should. "You wanna know where I was and what I was doing Saturday night?"
Reid only looked down in response.
"I was at a club downtown and I was dancing with a gorgeous young woman." He could see Reid's jaw clench and his chin quiver, but the kid still wouldn't look up at him. "I would have gone home with her, Reid."
Reid cleared his throat, obviously upset and hurt by what Morgan had just confessed. He licked his lips and swallowed hard. What Morgan had just told him said their relationship was in absolute jeopardy; he had to tell him. "It's, uhh, it's actually very simple, Morgan. You weren't far off." He took another swallow and watched as Morgan's eyebrows rose while he waited for a reply. "It's because I wanted to. I wanted to experience sex with someone else, before I… before we... before I made any commitments," he cleared his throat and continued. "I don't want... I… didn't want to always wonder if I chose correctly or if I'm missing something else because I never gave it a shot. I thought maybe some experience inside a different relationship would be of some benefit."
Morgan studied his friend hard. Reid looked physically ill, like that was the hardest thing for him to admit, which further highlighted how out of character he was acting. "I get that, but it's not all about sex, Reid. It never is."
"It wasn't only about sex," Reid shook his head as he tried to defend himself.
"And you can't just use people," Morgan spoke over him. "You can't have your cake and it eat it too. You ever heard that? And what the hell happened Saturday night? You should have just told me. You should have talked to me. You didn't need to get all bent outta shape and blow a gasket."
Reid bit his lip for as long he could while Morgan scolded him, but eventually interrupted him with determination as if Morgan had not understood anything he'd just said. "I didn't intend on you ever wanting to get back together. I didn't intend on liking Michael. I didn't intend on finding out he's such a wonderful person. I didn't intend on any of it. It just got so complicated and I was really hoping—" he paused and took a breath and rethought what he was going to say. As nicely as possible, he decided to remind Morgan of a few things. "You were jealous of Michael from day one. Nothing would have changed that. I knew that. And I was as honest with you as I felt I needed to be. Don't make this all my fault. You told me to go have my fun."
Man, of course Reid's good at remembering the stupid shit I say. He decided not to argue. "You know you belong with me, right? And I belong with you?" Morgan thought back to the night that Reid made love to him. "Right?"
"Yes," Reid breathed, practically forcing the word out. He honestly didn't know why he was acting like this. He didn't know if it had anything to do with Michael. Maybe he just hated being so wrong about everything.
"Why is that so hard for you to say now?"
"I love you, Morgan. Please don't ever doubt that." They sat together in silence for a couple minutes until Reid turned his body to face Morgan. "So… can we pretend it never happened? Saturday night, I mean? Can- Can we just start over?" Off in the distance, Reid saw JJ get off the elevator and wanted Morgan to answer before she made it the vehicle. "Please?"
Morgan felt the urgency in Reid's plea, but also caught his puppy dog eyes dancing back and forth as they glanced out the left rear windows. JJ must be coming. Morgan turned and looked over his left shoulder. Too late. As JJ opened the door and got inside the vehicle, Morgan glanced back at Reid who had turned his body forward and he had the most disappointed look on his face. Morgan wanted to give in; maybe Reid had come to his senses. Before he put the vehicle into gear, he said, "Reid?"
Reid's head immediately turned and he held his breath.
"Let me think about it."
The corners of Reid's mouth twitched as he tried to hold in his grin because JJ was watching him and he felt like he need to guard his expression. He sat back in his seat and let himself breathe with some relief as Morgan drove them to the local gym.
All three agents slowly walked into the gym lobby and they each began to take in the sights and sounds. Morgan and Reid walked directly to the counter to speak to the employee while JJ meandered behind them.
The young man locked eyes with Morgan right away and seemed to respond to him by standing up straighter, immediately sensing Morgan's alpha presence. "Hi, we're with the Behavioral Analysis Unit for the FBI." He flashed his badge, as did the others. "I'm Agent Derek Morgan and this is Dr. Spencer Reid and Agent Jareau. We have some questions regarding some clientele of yours?"
The kid looked a bit dumbfounded. "Okay," he said after he swallowed nervously.
"Is your manager around?" JJ asked, noticing how nervous the guy was. She didn't want him to piss himself.
They watched as the teenager dialed an extension to reach his boss. He mumbled into the phone and a quick moment later, hung up the receiver and then just stood there.
Reid read the young man's name tag and made eye contact with him. "Brett, is it?" Reid tried to ease him with a grin.
The kid nodded and tried to smile back.
"Brett, have you noticed any odd interactions between any members here, like arguments or any altercations? Maybe you've had some curious no shows to go along with unpaid accounts?"
The kid opened up to Reid right away. "All I know is that we've had three members no one has heard from in like five or six months and we just got informed about the death of three others."
Reid nodded and then took the iPad from JJ. He turned it on and swiped right to the file that had the images of the deceased men that they had linked to this particular gym. Next, he placed the thin screen on the counter so Brett could view the images. "Are these them?"
The young man's eyes grew wide as they traveled over the candid photos and mug shots. It was obvious he recognized them. "Yeah… Are they—" he tried to swallow the lump in his throat. "Are they all dead?"
"I'm afraid so. Can you think of any others that haven't shown? We may have more victims and not realize it yet." Reid lifted his head from looking at the screen as a he saw a man approaching them. He looked much more like an accountant or controller than any sort of manager of a fitness gym.
The middle aged man put on his glasses, walked behind the counter to stand with his employee and then took a good hard look at the pictures on the iPad himself after overhearing the conversation. He looked saddened by the news. "Hello, I'm Ryan Parker, the manager here," he held out his hand to Morgan.
"Agent Derek Morgan," he offered his hand in return. "Agents Dr. Reid and Jareau," Morgan pointed respectively.
"What can we do to help?" Ryan looked up at the agents and began pushing the iPad away, prompting Reid to pick up again.
"We'd actually like to ask around to find out some information about these men. It seems they were all regulars here for some time. We're hoping someone here knows something that's going to help lead us to their killer," Morgan told the man.
"You're sure it's the same person doing the killing?" the manager asked.
Both Reid and Morgan squinted at the manager, but Reid didn't let anyone answer him. "We'd like a complete list of all your members over the last two years as well," he interrupted.
"Right now we're just looking for more information," JJ insisted.
"Of course, but I just ask if anyone doesn't want to speak with you that you—"
"We're not here to harass anyone," Morgan promised. "If someone doesn't want to answer any questions, we'll move on or arrange to speak with them later if needed."
Ryan nodded, wanting to cooperate as much as he could without his customers being bothered. "I'll have the list you need out here in ten minutes. Just have Brett call me again if you need anything else."
"I'll wait here for the list," JJ told her fellow agents, "and I'll start talking to the women here if you boys want to stick to questioning all… these… men…"
The boys saw a bit of subtle playful lust in her eyes and took a moment to look behind themselves at all the hard bodies and flexing muscles and then brought their eyes back to JJ with curious faces. Morgan chuckled and sighed, turning around to head into the workout area. JJ winked at Reid and he gave her a smirk before he joined his male partner.
"What was that?" Morgan teased when Reid joined him.
"She's likely ovulating. A woman's sex drive will often peak during the time of the month when she's most fertile."
Morgan chuckled again. "Maybe she just saw all the hot bodies in here and got horny."
Reid stood corrected by Morgan's simplicity. "There's that. Are we really talking about this?"
"I plead the fifth," Morgan quickly said, not copping to any such conversation, which made Reid laugh a little bit. He began looking at people, sizing up who he thought he should talk to first until one in particular caught his eye. He had to do a double take; his hair was different, but yeah, that was Michael. "You gotta be shittin' me," he mumbled.
"What?"
Morgan nodded once looking directly in front of them. "Your boy toy is here."
"His name is Michael," Reid said slowly as he followed Morgan's eyes.
Morgan noticed he was allowed to say his name today.
And there he was… Michael Ortega - wearing only a low hanging pair of black boxers and he was shiny with sweat. He wasn't wearing any underwear and although the barely subtle outline of his large uncut cock was attention grabbing, Reid kept his focus on Michael's face; he was sporting a new crew cut that emphasized his boyish good looks and Reid couldn't look away. In fact, he found himself flushed immediately. He began to show a crooked smile when he and Michael made eye contact.
Morgan looked at Michael and then looked at Reid. He could see a twinkle in Reid's eyes that he didn't like and felt like a third wheel immediately. "Hey," he said to Reid softly trying to gently win back his interest. As Michael drew nearer, Reid's smile got wider and it was so ridiculously clear Reid was happy to see him.
Michael noticed that it was very clear that he had Reid's full attention, but seeing the two men standing closely beside each other, he realized that Reid would never be free of Morgan. They were partners and worked together on a daily basis. Michael knew this sucked for him and his chances with Reid, but he decided he couldn't let it bother him. He was still in this for the long haul. "Dr. Reid," Michael said, beaming with happiness. "What brings you here?" He made eye contact with Morgan and then looked at Reid again. "Did you miss me?" He dabbed at his sweaty face with a white towel.
Reid thought back to their conversation on the phone this morning. He couldn't believe he was ready to let Michael go. Look at him… He's the brightest light I've ever seen.
Smug son of a bitch. Morgan wanted to punch Michael right in the face, but instead he looked at Reid and waited to see what his response was gonna be. Reid didn't answer, but he smiled again and damn near blushed. "Sorry to interrupt, but we're here on a case."
Reid quickly straightened his posture and his smile morphed into a slight cringe.
Michael immediately appeared concerned. "Is everything alright?"
Reid nodded to mean no immediate danger. "Yeah, but it seems that people who use this gym either disappear or they're murdered."
Michael also nodded. "I've started to hear about that. Lots of rumors, anyway."
"Would you mind looking at some pictures? If you know them, maybe you can tell us when you last saw them?" Reid asked him. "Or who with?" He worked on getting the iPad going again.
All the while, Michael felt Morgan's sharp glare piercing a hole into him and he wasn't gonna stand for it. "Can I help you?"
Reid looked at Morgan, wondering why Michael had said that. He looked at Michael and then brought his eyes back to Morgan and his mouth relaxed open as he began to wonder what was going on. The tension between these two was unreal; so much more prominent than ever before. And this was the first time Michael had ever been confrontational. It all threw Reid off so much that, for a second, he actually questioned if he was dreaming.
"He'll never love you."
Reid's jaw dropped to the floor. What the hell? Did he really just say that? "Morgan!" he whispered. He saw it with his own eyes and heard the words loud and clear, yet he still couldn't believe his partner had said something so unprofessional.
Michael stepped up to Morgan slowly as he spoke. "Is that so, Agent Morgan?"
No, no, no… Before Reid knew it, both of his lovers were in each other's faces. "Michael!" Reid tried in a hushed voice. "You guys cannot do this right now."
"I am gonna kick your ass if you don't back the fuck away from me," Morgan warned.
"Stand down," Reid told his partner quietly through his teeth, trying to command him. Morgan's threat had Reid nervous because the last thing he wanted or needed was for them to resort to throwing punches, especially while Morgan was on the job. He swallowed anxiously wishing Michael would do as Morgan had asked, but Reid could tell that Michael wasn't scared of Morgan. Reid began raising his arm to place between them and had already placed his other hand on Morgan's shoulder, wanting to be ready to force distance. He had little concern for the iPad still in his hand. "Michael…"
Michael's expression took on a playful tone and he smirked just a bit as he got close enough to Morgan that they were nearly mouth to mouth. "I'd like to take you on."
Reid noticed right away that Michael had turned the tables and was flirting with Morgan… but Morgan wasn't biting. "Give me one reason…" Morgan just wanted one reason to lay this home wrecker out.
"Morgan, Morgan, Derek," Reid kept pleading. He could feel sweat on his face and under his arms. He would have liked to blame it all on panic, but seeing Michael offer himself to Morgan in such a way left an unintentional and unexpected underlying charge in Reid's system. He wanted more than ever for these two to literally kiss and make up, and he wanted to watch, but now obviously wasn't the time; he had to ignore his body's response.
A small crowd had gathered and started watching. Michael winked at Morgan and backed away with open arms. "Do you wanna take this outside right now or meet me after you get off work?" He grin was damn near sinful.
"Michael that is enough!" Reid snapped. "Both of you…" he glared at Morgan.
After the two men relaxed their stances, Reid cleared his throat and lowered his arms, moving back a step. Jesus, that was awkward, Reid thought as he tried to get back into a work mindset, but it was difficult. He glanced at Michael just as he opened a folder on the iPad. Michael just kinda shrugged, like 'sorry, not sorry', and Reid frowned as he focused on the iPad again. He glanced Morgan's direction and was happy to see that Morgan had his hands clasped behind his back and he was just standing there, patiently waiting for whatever was next.
Reid turned the iPad Michael's direction and Michael gently took the device from him. "We've been able to link six murders and possibly a sev…" Reid stopped talking as it became clear that Michael knew these men.
"They're all dead?" Michael's eyes began to gloss over and Reid and Morgan could both tell he was very upset.
"Yeah - I'm sorry, were you close to any of them?"
"Actually, yeah, some of them. Others are just, you know…" Michael sniffed and ran his towel over his face before looking at the images again. "This guy is a major asshole. He and I don't get along at all. This guy, he's… he's an ex-boyfriend of mine." He quickly glanced up at Reid wondering if Reid could tell that the man he'd just pointed to was Jason, a man he'd had such deep feelings for. And Reid did glance up at Michael for a second, but then he continued to watch to see which guys he was pointing at as he spoke. "He's an old lover," he continued, "uhm… but I haven't seen him in a while. This guy…" a smile crept onto this face, "That was my first night ever with twins. And to throw their friend in the mix was… a night that I'll… never forget." Michael looked so sad suddenly, like it had just dawned on him again that these men were all dead.
Morgan interrupted. "You get around, don't ya?"
"Morgan!" Reid scolded.
Michael couldn't even reply to Morgan's comment, suddenly so embarrassed to top everything off.
"Are they all exes of yours?" Morgan asked Michael.
Michael looked at Morgan with questioning eyes. "Not exactly…" He pointed to the first picture. "This guy does nothing but harass me whenever he sees me. We aren't exactly cozy." His eyes moved back and forth between Morgan and Reid. "Why? What are you getting at?"
The fact that these men were dead still hadn't fully registered with Michael. He kept speaking about them in the present tense. That indicated innocence, but there was a problem. Why hadn't Michael noticed all these men missing from his life, one after another? Or had he? "Didn't you notice a pattern here?" Reid gently questioned, not wanting to personally or professionally offend him.
Michael locked eyes with Reid and tried to enlighten him. "Bullies come in and out of my life. Boyfriends and lovers come in and out of my life. One night stands are that for a reason. And when one of my relationships end, I move on. I don't pathetically hang around in the background hoping he'll take me back." Even the small crowd could tell who that burn was meant for. Morgan shifted on his feet, but maintained his composure. Michael practically snarled at Morgan as he finished, "So, no, I didn't notice a pattern here."
As Michael explained himself, Reid's wheels had started turning. His gut told him that Michael wasn't behind all the killings, but he questioned if Michael was somehow at the center of this. Then he realized that he and Morgan were too close to this. "Morgan?" Reid tried to spit out that he and Morgan needed to be taken off the case, but lost his voice the moment his eye caught movement to his left. He helplessly watched as Morgan pulled his hand cuffs from around his back.
"Alright, Michael. Hands behind your back."
"Wait a minute," Michael laughed. His smile faded when the look on Morgan's face told him that this was no joke. "You're not serious?"
Reid's mind was scrambling so hard and fast that he felt frozen. Everything around him was happening in slow motion and he still couldn't stop it. He glanced around to find JJ and couldn't so he sunk his hand into pocket and grabbed for his phone.
Morgan already had one cuff secured around Michael's wrist. "Wait," Reid told Morgan, knowing he wasn't going to be heard.
"What's going on here?" an out of place familiar voice asked.
"Morgan, you and I both are off of this case as of right now."
Morgan's frustration at Reid's words had him unintentionally handle Michael with more force, making the young man wince as Morgan held his free arm behind his back to finish cuffing him.
Reid turned around with the phone to his ear as it rang and was shocked to see Michael's sister. "Maya…" he breathed in, startled. His first thought was the Michael and Maya must do everything together, even work out. But he had very little focus to spend on her when JJ finally answered. "I need you back here, right now." He hung up the call and took a look at all of the faces in the gym that were watching or had their face turned toward him. He was convinced that someone here was indirectly after Michael. He needed to remember what these people looked like.
Morgan's eyebrows rose as he got a first look at Maya. Tight body, barely there workout gear and drop dead gorgeous. Obviously not an identical twin, but she was definitely related to Michael.
"Hey, why are you arresting my brother?" she demanded of Reid.
"We're not," he frantically glanced around for JJ.
"The hell we're not," Morgan told Reid. "He's linked to every single one of those victims. He's coming with us." Morgan began to recite to Michael his Miranda Rights.
"Michael, what do you want me to do?" Maya asked, worried for her brother.
Before Michael could even respond, Morgan interrupted. "Let's bring her in too."
Maya looked absolutely shocked. It was clear she thought Morgan was nuts.
"What? NO," Reid flat out told Morgan. "Morgan, stop, he's a cop." Reid didn't want to jeopardize Michael's career and good standing with the community if none of Morgan's assumptions were correct. "Uncuff him. It's not necessary," he tried to emphasize.
As Morgan ignored Reid and continued advising Michael of his rights, JJ finally showed up. She recognized Michael from the police station seminar and appeared genuinely surprised to see Morgan had arrested him.
"JJ, we have a problem," Reid took a deep breath as she stood in front of him wondering what the hell had just happened. She glanced over Michael's shoulder and around him a little bit to see Morgan placing handcuffs on a woman and then she looked Michael in the eye. He looked a bit distraught and distant. Reid looked pretty worried himself as he stood next to Michael. While JJ dialed Hotch, she walked around Michael and Reid to watch Morgan and the woman she didn't recognize. Right as Hotch answered, JJ saw Reid's hand come around to Michael's where they rested behind his back. She watched their fingers intertwine and that made her look at Morgan to see if he noticed, but he hadn't... and now JJ understood so much more than she had just a few minutes ago. About everything.
My apologies for taking so long to post! Most of what's next is written so I'll get it out to ya as soon as possible!