Hey, everyone. Sorry again for the wait but I've been a bit slow with my writing. I'll admit that I got a little distracted doing my knitting and I also wanted to make sure I have all the updates finished before posting. I'm doing four updates across the board tonight but Torment of Darkness will be updated tomorrow. It just needs to be checked over but I have run out of time tonight. Thanks again for being really patient with me. I am planning to end this story soon but I'm not sure how many chapters are left yet on this. I'd say at least five if not a little more. I'll give you a proper answer soon. I have many stories in my head that I'm really eager to do so don't worry, Reid whump will still be supplied. Anyway, enjoy and I look forward to hearing from you all.

Thank you so much for all the reviews. You're absolutely brilliant and amazing. Thank you!

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All mistakes are my own

Emily and Morgan rushed into Rossi's house after using her key to get in. Soft whimpers travelled through the air from Reid's bedroom. Emily ran to the room with Morgan only a few steps behind her. She walked in to find Reid on his bed and clutching a pillow with tears running down his face. Sitting by his side, she put her arm around him and held him close. "Reid, what happened?"

"I can't stop them," Reid shook his head. "They all came rushing back when I saw that photo. WHY DID SHE SEND ME THAT?!"

"Where is the letter and photo?" Morgan asked.

"By the front door, I think," Reid coughed as he furiously wiped his cheeks. He leaned against Emily and found comfort in her arms. While in that moment, he felt the safest, he also felt more vulnerable than he had in months. Morgan walked out of the bedroom and returned a few moments later with the letter and picture. "Morgan, don't let me see it again. Please."

"I can't believe she would send this to you," Morgan vented angrily as he finished reading the letter. "She knows what he did to you. He was a monster and she expects you to forgive him after he almost killed you. We are going to deal with this."

"She said that he was a normal man before he was kidnapped and that he wasn't a killer before being brainwashed," Reid said before getting angry. "He was a monster and I know he had evil inside of him. We know Carey Lock took him and the other one for a reason and that's because he saw something inside of them. I saw that evil glee when he was strangling me. I just want to forget him!"

Emily turned and wrapped her arms around him. She kissed the top of his head and stroked his hair. "I'm here. I promise that we'll take care of this."

"I just don't want to be alone," Reid sighed as he tried to stop himself from becoming more upset. "I keep flashing back and I hate it. I will never forgive him for the torture that he inflicted onto me. He was a monster and I know that deep down he always was. Carey just helped him let that monster out."

"Emily, stay here with Reid and I'll cover everything at work. I'm also going to get this dealt with. I want to know how Mrs Wilson found out where Reid is living."

"Tell her a message from me. Tell her if she ever contacts Reid again, she'll have me to deal with," Emily said strongly.

"Will do," Morgan nodded. "Kid, you need anything else before I go."

"No," Reid said shakily before looking to Emily. "I have what I need now."

"I'll be back later tonight, kid," Morgan smiled before giving Emily a small nod. He left the room determined to track down Amanda Wilson and warn her against any further contact with Reid.

Emily kissed Reid's cheek before stroking some of his hair behind his ears. "He's dead, Spencer. Declan is dead and he can't ever hurt you again."

"You call him Declan but he'll always be Dell to me. Emily, Tobias Hankel still sometimes haunts me to this day. How long am I going to be haunted by what Dell did to me?"

"I wish I could say that you won't be haunted for long but on some level, Dell will always haunt you in one way or another and you have to be strong to deal with that. I remember what Doyle did to me at least once a day. I look at the scar he left on my chest and I remember screaming when he did it. It's going to happen because it's something that traumatised me. However, I also draw strength from the memories of the pain. I know I was strong when he did what he did. I survived and I am stronger now than I was then. Reid, after Tobias, I know you struggled but you came out of that trauma with a stronger mind and a stronger will. You may be struggling now but after some time, I know you'll be a warrior. You won't draw fear from the memories but courage."

Reid looked up at Emily and into her brown eyes. "You have an amazing way of making someone feel better. I just hope I can be the warrior that you think I can be."

"You're already my warrior," she grinned before kissing him. "We need to do something to make you feel better."

"Just being with you makes me feel better," he smiled. "Did that sound corny?"

"No, it sounded sweet," Emily chuckled.

Morgan walked into Hotch's office and placed the letter and photo down on the table. "This is why Reid is upset."

Hotch picked up the photo and gritted his jaw as he stopped the anger inside of him from overcoming him. He quickly read the letter and shook his head. "Is she insane? Declan was a sadistic monster. How would she ever expect Reid to forgive that bastard?"

"I don't know but Mrs Wilson needs to be told not to cross this boundary ever again," Morgan said. "I was going to track her down originally but on the way here, I thought you would be better at doing it. You should call her."

"Why do you think that?"

"Hotch, Declan called you every time and you more than any of us got affected by what happened to Reid. You try to hide it but we all see it. When you're around Reid, you react to everything that he does and you're at his side the moment he shows any kind of pain or distress. You had to hear Reid scream and that isn't something you just forget. I know you wanted to protect him back then. You can protect him now. Call this woman and tell her to never contact Reid again. That damn picture sent his mind spiralling into some dark places."

"I'll call her," Hotch said. Morgan was about to leave but stopped as Hotch called out his name. "Morgan, thank you. You're right by the way."

"It affected us all," Morgan sighed before giving Hotch a sad smile. "Go and see Reid after work. It'll do you both good."

Hotch dialled Amanda Wilson's number after retrieving it with Garcia's help. He waited for her to answer and straightened in his chair as her voice came down the line. "Hello."

"Is this Amanda Wilson?" Hotch asked.

"Yes, who is this?"

"My name is Aaron Hotchner. I'm calling in regards to the letter you sent to Dr Spencer Reid. I'm his friend and also his boss. You must cease all contact with Spencer immediately or I will be forced to take further action."

"I don't understand," Mrs Wilson said down the phone. "I just sent him that letter because I don't want him to remember my son as a monster. Declan was a good boy before he was taken from me."

"I'm sorry, Mrs Wilson, but I just don't believe that," Hotch replied. "Casey Lock took Declan and another man as he saw something inside of them. Something that he knew he could use to twist them into what they became. We learned that Casey stalked them before taking them. He knew there was something inside your son that wasn't right. My agent, my friend, saw that evil inside of him when he was being strangled unconscious and beaten mercilessly. The fact you want my friend to forgive your son is insane."

"I just-" Mrs Wilson began to say before Hotch interrupted her.

"Your letter and damn photo has possibly sent Spencer months back in his mental recovery. Your son is responsible for almost killing Spencer. He kidnapped him, tortured and abused him and almost killed him. He broke Spencer's legs with a sledgehammer and laughed. I am telling you right now that if you send anything else to Spencer or try to contact him, I will bring charges against you for harassing a federal agent. He's been through hell and he doesn't need reminders of that from you."

Hotch slammed down his phone and let out a shaky breath. He was going to take Morgan's advice and see Reid at the end of the day.

Emily climbed into the pool after getting rid of her clothes and just staying in her underwear and bra. She had already helped lower Reid into the pool where he was holding onto the edge of the pool for support. He was wearing a pair of boxers. They had improvised after not having any swimming wear. Emily had called Reid's doctor and sought permission. The doctor encouraged him moving in the pool but only under strict supervision and only if he didn't over do it. They had removed his compression bandages. Emily swam over to him and smiled as she supported his weight as he came away from the edge. "Reid, you're way too skinny and light still."

"That's not always a bad thing," he smirked back. "Can I try to stand?"

"Of course," she nodded. "We can also try to get you walking a little. Your bones and muscles are a little weak so we have to work on building them up again. Don't push yourself though. We can't over do this."

Emily watched as Reid straightened his body with help. "It's so strange standing up," Reid said.

"It's a step in the right direction," Emily said before kissing his cheek. "Now, show me what those legs can do."

Hotch pulled up to Rossi's house behind Rossi's car and turned off the engine. He took a moment to let the stress of the day fall away from him. Rossi stepped out of his car. Hotch got out of his car and walked with Rossi to the door. "You doing okay?" Rossi asked as he turned the key and opened his door.

"I'm not fine but I'm hoping I feel better after talking with Reid."

They walked into the living room to see Emily cuddled up with Reid on the couch. Rossi was the first to noticed that Emily was wearing one of Reid's t-shirts.

Reid and Emily looked up to see them. "Hey," Reid smiled.

Both Hotch and Rossi were not expecting to see Reid with such a big smile on his face.

"Emily, could I speak with Reid alone for a moment?" Hotch said.

"Sure," Emily nodded before rising up from the couch and ruffling Rossi's hair. "I was about to make Reid something to eat anyway."

"I'll give you a hand," Rossi said before following her into the kitchen. Hotch took a seat next to Reid and let out a calming breath. "I've dealt with Amanda Wilson. Morgan thought it was best if I did it. I've told her not to contact you in anyway. Reid, if she contacts you again, call me and I'll press charges against her for harassment of a federal agent. She should never have sent that to you and there is no way in hell that man will ever get forgiveness."

"It just brought back a lot of bad memories," Reid admitted shakily. "Emily has helped me today. She helped me with the memories trying to take over and we even did some physical therapy in the pool. Don't worry, I got permission from my doctor first. Are you okay, Hotch? You look troubled."

"Reid, I need to talk to you about your time with Declan. I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Reid frowned. "It was all Dell's fault. I'm sorry but I can't see him as Declan. I can't see him as anything but a monster."

"Reid, I'm sorry for not saving you sooner. I wasn't even the one to save you either. Morgan was the one who rescued you in the end. Declan called my phone every single time and I remember hearing your screams and your pain. It hurts knowing that I couldn't stop that. He almost killed you and I should have done more. We would never have found you without you calling for help. I'm sorry that you had to go through much pain before we got to you."

"Don't ever think that you didn't do enough to find me because you did," Reid spoke. "Hotch, it was your voice that kept me going. You reminded me that I wasn't weak and you gave me hope because you told me you would find me and I knew that you would never stop till you found me. What he did to me isn't your fault. Don't ever think that. Your voice helped me through the pain and you found me. Hotch, I'm here and alive because you put roadblocks up and co-ordinated all the police for my rescue. You saved me. The whole team saved me. I wouldn't be here without everyone supporting me. I don't want you to remember my screams, Hotch. I don't want them to cause you pain. I feel good now and I'm rebuilding my life. I want you to feel the same. I want you to be happy."

"I'm happy as long as you're doing well," Hotch smiled gently.

"I'm doing really well," Reid grinned. "Emily is one of the biggest reasons for that."

"I already know something happened between you," Hotch chuckled. "I'm happy for you both. We've seen it coming for months."

"I don't feel like anything happened with Declan when I'm around her, Hotch."

"Then, don't let her go, Reid."

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