Getting lots of writing done today, so you guys get two of my longest chapters in the same day!
Thank you for all the reviews - they truly inspire me to keep writing. I'm glad most of you seem to be really enjoying the story! I love feedback, whether positive or constructive - it's all very appreciated!
I have lots more in store for Reid, so stay tuned!
Hotch needed a few seconds to gather his thoughts before they clicked the link. They hadn't had time to add their new information to the profile of Reid's captor. They hadn't even had time to look the man up. But he knew that they couldn't wait long to click that link, so they were going to have to go in blind. Hotch sighed and addressed his team.
"I will be the only person to speak while we are on video, understood?" The stern look on his face elicited immediate nods from the entire team.
Hotch continued. "Good. We are going to act as if we haven't discovered the identity of Dr. Malcolm. The last thing that we need is for him to panic or to try to move Reid before we get a chance to check his addresses. With any luck, he's holding Reid on a property he owns and we'll be able to take him by surprise." Again, Hotch received nods from his team. They all agreed with his plan, and were too anxious and nervous to see Reid on the screen in a few short seconds to argue anyway.
Aaron softened his expression, showing for a brief moment the worry that he saw reflected on everyone else's faces. "We need to be strong for Reid. He's going to be looking to us and he needs to see our determination to find him. We can help him by keeping his hopes up. Hanging on to the hope that we will find him soon is what going to get him through this." I just pray that we don't let him down.
Aaron turned to Garcia. "Penelope, if you want to excuse yourself from the room for this, I would understand." He knew that her high sense of empathy made the gruesome images they dealt with everyday very difficult for her to look at. He wasn't sure that the tech analyst had it in her for another round of Reid's suffering. Though come to think of it, he wasn't sure any of his team did.
"Thank you sir, but I need to stay. I'm going to try a new strategy to track the video feed this time, but I need to be in the room to monitor it. Besides, I need to be here for Reid. He needs all of us right now, like you said." Garcia had a determination to her that Hotch had seen before. Her level of empathy was perhaps rivalled only by her sense of protectiveness. She was like a mama bear - no one hurt her family and got away with it.
"Alright then, if everyone is ready, go ahead and click the link Garcia." Hotch couldn't help but feel that by clicking the link, they were doing exactly what Dr. Malcolm wanted them to do. But until they had more information, they had no choice. It seemed better to click the link and know what was happening to Reid, than to ignore it and potentially set Malcolm off even worse.
Hotch wasn't a particularly religious person, but in that moment he sent a silent prayer for Reid's safe return to them.
Reid saw the video feed come to life and his team popped up on the screen. While the computer wasn't directly in front of him anymore, he could still shift his glance enough to get a good look at them.
Garcia was dead center, sitting down. She had a sad smile on her face that he knew was for him. She was not great at concealing her emotions - they always shone through. He noticed that she wasn't typing away this time. He wasn't sure if that was because she knew tracing the video was pointless, or if she was tracking in a more covert manner so as not to set off Dr. Malcolm. He hoped it was the latter, but regardless knew that the tech genius was doing everything in her power to find him. They all were - he didn't doubt that for one second.
Next his gaze went to JJ. She had put her hair up into a ponytail since the last video. That was a look she usually reserved for the field. He suspected that she put it up so she would have no distractions during this case. And so she would be ready to go as soon as they had a lead. That was a reassuring thought to Reid, like maybe they were getting close to finding him. Reid felt calmer as he looked into JJ's eyes. He could see strength and determination radiating out of her and it helped him to strengthen his own resolve.
Emily was standing beside JJ. Her poker face was on point as always, but he caught just a flicker of a smile directed his way. Reid wanted nothing more than to smile back at her. Emily and Reid had a special friendship that he didn't have with anyone else. He loved that the rest of the team treated him like a little brother, since he didn't exactly have a normal family situation growing up. But sometimes they treated him like he was a child. Emily always treated him like the adult he was, and saw him as her equal.
Reid looked to Rossi next. He was standing near the back of the group. If he didn't know any better, Reid would think that the current situation wasn't affecting the man at all. But Reid knew Rossi had an amazing ability to manage his micro-expressions far better than anyone else on the team. Reid was thankful that Rossi was able to keep his expression strong. He acted as the rock for the rest of the team, and they probably needed it right about now. When David Rossi started to panic, that's when you knew the situation is dire – so Reid drew assurance from Rossi's composure.
Morgan was standing beside Garcia with his arms crossed. A stranger might think that Morgan was pissed off, but Reid knew the crinkle in his forehead was Morgan's attempt to conceal his worry. Morgan acted like the toughest person in the room, but Reid knew it was taking everything in his power to hold it together. The only way he could get through these personal cases was to close himself off. But Reid knew that his worry also translated to determination. Derek Morgan wouldn't rest until Reid was safe and the man responsible was apprehended. Reid would hate to be Dr. Malcolm if Morgan got his hands on him, that's for sure.
Last but not least, Reid's eyes made their way to Aaron Hotchner. The man was very good at keeping a straight face. But Reid could see that there were many emotions struggling to stay concealed behind the man's eyes. Reid knew that Hotch cared deeply for every person on his team, and took personal responsibility for keeping them safe. Hotch had two sides to his personality – the serious, all business side he presented when they were on a case; and the caring father figure with a sense of humor that they got to see sometimes outside of work. Reid knew that, if he got through this, Hotch would be by his side to help him recover from this traumatic experience. Not if – when. I have to think positively and stay strong for the team.
Reid's thoughts were pulled away from his team when Malcolm made himself known. "Shall we get started?" Reid could only see Dr. Malcolm's eyes under the mask, but he was quite certain that there was a smile on his face as he held up the scissors for Reid and the webcam to see.
"You don't have to do this. Let us help you. Return Reid to us without any further harm done to him, and we will make sure that the DA knows you cooperated with us," Hotch tried to reason. He knew it wasn't likely to work, but he would say whatever he could to try to attract the man's attention to the webcam and away from Reid, who sat helpless and unable to move despite the lack of physical bonds.
"HA! That's what Rossi said last time, but he didn't follow through," Malcolm exclaimed. Immediately, his eyes went wide and then angry behind his mask. Clearly he had slipped up, revealing information that could lead to his identification if the team hadn't already found it out.
Reid let out a deep breath of relief. If the team didn't know who the unsub was already, that piece of information all but assured that they would after this video. So at least something positive will come of this, Reid thought.
Reid's moment of relief was quickly gone when Malcolm moved towards him with the scissors. He squeezed his eyes shut, unable to do anything else to try to defend against the psychotic man approaching him with a sharp object.
Reid opened his eyes a moment later when he realized that no sharp pain was befalling him. Instead, Reid watched as Dr. Malcolm took the scissors to the noose of Reid's tie and threw it to the ground. He made short work of removing Reid's sweater vest and buttoned top as well. Dr. Malcolm's frustration for revealing unwanted information manifested itself in the rough way he handled Reid as he cut off his top. Reid was lucky the man hadn't cut him in the process. When he was done, Dr. Malcolm dropped the scissors to the floor and admired his handiwork.
Reid had never felt so exposed in his life. He sat in the chair shirtless, unable to move, and completely at the mercy of the revenge-seeking man in front of him. If that wasn't bad enough, Reid's entire team was going to watch what was about to unfold. Please let me keep the rest of my clothes on. While Reid knew that Dr. Malcolm was a child molester, he hadn't previously considered the possibility of this going where he now desperately hoped it wouldn't. Reid didn't fit the type of Malcolm's preferred victims – prepubescent females. Reid kept his eyes locked on Malcolm, not daring to look at the screen in case his team's strength was waning. He didn't think he could keep it together if he saw tears from his friends right now.
Reid registered that Hotch was still talking. He was asking questions and trying to catch Dr. Malcolm's attention, but the man didn't seem like he even heard Hotch. If he did, he was ignoring it.
Reid inwardly cringed at Dr. Malcolm's next action, which was to remove Reid's belt. He made all of the noise he could in protest – which amounted to a muffled moan through his immobile lips. Reid knew it sounded pathetic, but he didn't like where this situation looked like it was heading, and was very close to losing it completely.
Dr. Malcolm laughed at Reid's pitiful protest. "Don't worry Dr. Reid. You're not my type." Thank God, Reid thought. He was sure he heard several of his teammates let out a breath of relief as well.
"Now I want you to remember, Dr. Reid, that you brought this on yourself. You ruined my life. This is just payback for what you did to me," Dr. Malcolm said, anger seeping into his voice.
Reid could do nothing to prepare himself for the first blow as it took him my surprise. Dr. Malcolm had whipped Reid with his own belt, and the impact caused Reid to whimper as the pain registered in his abdomen. It was excruciating. He closed his eyes, the only action he could take against the agony. He never thought he would long for the ability to flinch.
Reid could hear a gasp from one of his female teammates, and Hotch yelling. But Malcolm ignored the video stream, lost in his own sadistic fantasy he was playing out. He hit Reid again and again. Reid couldn't help but sob at each blow, wishing that he was strong enough to keep his reactions internalized. He could feel tears begin to run down his cheeks. Reid wanted nothing more than for this punishment to stop, and for his team to not have to see the pain he was in.
The blows continued to crash down on him, one after another. They landed all over his torso and arms. He had lost count of the amount of hits he had taken, and just closed his eyes and silently prayed for the attack to stop. He tried to listen for his friend's voices, but Hotch had stopped trying to talk the man out of the attack. The entire team was silent. The only sounds to be heard were the impact noise of the belt, Reid's whimpers in response, and Dr. Malcolm's grunts as he put his full effort into the attack. Perhaps Hotch thought that the reaction of the team was what the man was after, and didn't want to give that to him.
Dr. Malcolm sounded like he was getting a little winded from the effort he was putting into the blows he dealt. Eventually the hits stopped, and Reid heard the belt hit the ground. He opened his eyes to see Dr. Malcolm staring at him, taking in the damage he had inflicted. Not wanting to meet the man's eyes, Reid stole a glance to the computer screen.
He looked awful. His previously pale skin had too many red marks to count. The belt had broken the skin in several spots and he was bleeding. Tear tracks were visible down his face and he could do nothing to wipe them away.
Reid turned his attention to his friends, most of whom had their hands over their mouths in a subconscious effort to keep silent and not cry out. Reid did his very best to convey with his eyes that he was okay. He wasn't sure if he believed that himself, but he needed his team to believe it.
Reid's eyes snapped back to Dr. Malcolm, but the man was moving out of view, back to where Reid believed was his staging area. He reappeared seconds later with the black duct tape in his hands.
Reid was confused, unable to surmise what the man's plan for the tape might be. Ordinarily he'd assume the man was going to restrain him, but the drugs were already accomplishing that quite well.
"I don't think you've had enough taken away from you yet, Dr. Reid. Not as much as I have. So I'm taking away the one thing you have left. Then maybe you'll understand how I felt." With that, Dr. Malcolm began pulling the end of the tape loose.
Reid didn't realize what Malcolm meant until he began wrapping the tape around the top of Reid's head. Three times around was way more than sufficient. Dr. Malcolm had indeed taken away the one thing he had left – his sight. The tape blocked all light and he was immersed in complete and total darkness.
Reid heard Hotch cry out, "stop, wait," before a click indicated that the laptop lid had been closed and the connection lost. Retreating footsteps up the basement stairs meant that Reid was alone, in pain, unable to move, and now unable to see.