"You don't need to bother, I don't need to be. I'll keep slipping farther, but once I hold on, I won't let go 'til it bleeds." Stone Sour-'Bother'.
JJ dropped heavily into a plastic seat which screeched across the tiled floor, her Kevlar vest tightly gripped in her hands. Hands that were stained red with Spencer's blood. The waiting room was a blur, as if she was trapped in a stop motion movie.
The gurney crashed through the double doors. One of the medics was pumping furiously on the bag forcing oxygen into the man occupying the gurney. Spencer remained still and lifeless. JJ had tried her best to keep up with them.
"This is Spencer Reid. He was found unconscious at the scene. Unresponsive to verbal and painful stimuli. GCS of three. Suspected benzo OD. Slow and shallow breaths indicating imminent respiratory arrest. Intubated on site. Blunt force trauma to back of head and temple. Several puncture wounds to the neck indicating forced drug use. Probable radial fracture. Knee appears dislocated and fractured. We also noticed a human bite to the neck. Very hypotensive at seventy systolic, even with fluids."
"Okay, let's get him straight to trauma CT and get the OR prepped."
JJ was snapped out of her thoughts by the sound of tearing velcro. She glanced up to see Emily approaching, tugging open the straps of her vest. Emily's dark eyes looked exhausted but were fixed to the blonde agent. She eased her aching body down next to JJ. JJ turned so that she was facing the dark haired unit chief.
"Did you find her?" asked JJ with a trembling voice. Emily stretched out her shoulder and rubbed her tired muscles with her palm.
"Yeah. Bitch tried to make for the open window. The only window she's looking at is the two way one in interrogation. Any news?" JJ shook her head, her ponytail swaying.
"They took him straight to CT and then to surgery. He's in bad shape, Em. They think he's been overdosed." A tall, dark skinned doctor approached the pair. He held a clipboard in his hands.
"Are you Emily Prentiss? Mr Reid's medical contact?"
"I am. And it's Dr Spencer Reid."
"Sure. I'm Dr Rawley and I'm one of the ER doctors. I have come to inform you that Dr Reid has gone to surgery. Scans confirmed he has a moderate concussion from blunt force trauma, an oblique fracture to his left radius and a fractured dislocation of his left knee. I see from his records that he has had multiple surgeries on that knee before. He has deep lacerations on his wrists from overtight restraints. He is also severely dehydrated. That's not all. He has been overdosed on benzodiazepines. We are running a tox screen to determine which one. We have had to place him into a medically induced coma for a few days whilst he detoxes from the drug. Finally, he has been bitten." The doctor visibly cringed at the thought, "It's a human bite and it has broken the skin. It's unclear what damage has been done to the underlying tissue, but we will need to give him tetanus and hepatitis shots, as well as put him on a prophylactic course of antibiotics. Dr Saltwell is the trauma and orthopaedic surgeon overseeing Dr Reid's surgery. She will update you once surgery is completed." Both women have a silent smile of thanks.
"I can't believe this has happened. He called me when he got the first letter and I told him he was over thinking it. If I had just believed him."
"JJ? You can't blame yourself. Lila was going to get him somehow. It was just a matter of when. She's been nursing this obsession for over a decade. We'll get him through this." JJ and Emily turned to the sound of squeaking shoes against the tiled floor. The remainder of the team filed in. David and Luke were carrying trays of steaming disposable cups. Penelope trotted behind, her bright yellow dress with matching heels and hair band illuminating the room.
"Any news?" asked Tara.
"He's in surgery. He has moderate concussion, broken wrist, fractured and dislocated knee, deep cuts to his wrists, and a bite to his neck. They put him in a medically induced coma for a few days while he detoxes. He's been overdosed on benzodiazepines," responded Emily. David whistled as he handed her a cup.
"The kid has no luck at all," muttered David.
"Oh, my baby boy! I don't understand why anyone would want to hurt him. He's such a sweetie," sobbed Penelope as she dabbed her eyes with a silk handkerchief.
"She's obviously bitter that he never kept in contact with her. I guess you don't really know someone," shrugged Matt. JJ bit her lip in thought.
"Do you think he'll be addicted again after this? He's been clean for over ten years now. He refused Ambien and narcotics out of fear of becoming dependent. If he develops a new addiction, this will be the end of him."
"Thankfully he's in a coma whilst he detoxes. Hopefully all psychological traces of it will be gone too," answered Emily. Tara, Luke and Matt glanced at one another.
"Clean? What are you guys talking about?" asked Luke, an eyebrow quirked in confusion. JJ cleared her throat and shifted her feet awkwardly.
"Ten years ago, Spence was kidnapped by a guy name Tobias Hankle who had DID. Hankle's three personalities were his own, his father Charles, and the archangel Raphael. Hankle tortured and drugged him with a Dilaudid/hallucinogen mix for three days. Spence was forced to choose people to die. He ended up hooked on Dilaudid. He really struggled to overcome his addiction, so much so that he refuses to take anything that could be addictive." A silence befell the group as they pondered the potential consequences.
Three days later...
The first thing that Spencer felt as the dark haze started to melt away from his mind was the intense pain around his body. A voice was coaxing him out of the darkness but the sheer agony made him want to retreat. He decided he would try to move his fingers first. A searing pain shot through his left wrist. Spencer slowly peeled open his eyes. White. He rolled his eyes to his left. He watched a green line with curiosity as it moved steadily across a monitor. My blood pressure is 122 over 76. That's textbook. Pulse is fifty-eight. Perfectly acceptable. Oxygen levels are okay. EKG. I'm in hospital. Spencer closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath. He decided to try looking to his right. A plain, pale blue wall. His head pounded steadily in time with his heart beat. Spencer licked his lips and attempted to lift his head slightly. The oxygen cannula seated under his nose tickled his nostrils. The pounding intensified, causing him to groan in pain and squeeze his eyes shut. His neck ached as if he had found himself to have slept in an awkward position. He felt the tip of a straw press against his lips. He tensed slightly, then relented into sipping the icy cold water. It was like heaven in his throat. He sucked on the straw, desperate for the cold goodness.
"Slowly, Spence," came a soft female voice. Spencer released his thirsty hold on the straw and licked his parched lips. He creaked open his eyes to see JJ stood over him with a beaker nestled between her hands. A coloured straw protruded from the top of the beaker. She watched him in anticipation with wide blue eyes.
"JJ?" Spencer shuffled slightly in an attempt to sit up. Pain tore through his left wrist and knee. He gasped and cradled his casted wrist.
"Careful, Spence. Here, let me sit you up." JJ placed the beaker on the bedside table and grabbed the control for the bed. Spencer felt the whirring of the motor on the bed as his upper torso was brought into an upright position.
"What happened, Jayje?"
"We found you unconscious. You had been overdosed on Valium. You were about to go into respiratory arrest. You had to be placed into a coma to help you detox." Spencer swallowed thickly.
"I'm not on narcotics, am I?" JJ shook her head, "Good. What do they have me on?"
"Ibuprofen, Tylenol and antibiotics. Spence? Are you having any cravings?" Spencer furrowed his brow at the blonde agent.
"No. Should I?" It was JJ's turn to crease her brow.
"Spence, you were given Valium. It can cause dependency."
"Well, the only thing I'm craving right now is coffee." Spencer's tone was biting. He folded his arms indignantly over his chest. Another wave of pain swept through his wrist. He groaned and cradled his arm again, "What were my injuries? Besides the overdose." JJ cleared her throat.
"You fractured and dislocated your knee that they had to put back into place and pin. You have a broken wrist and a moderate concussion. You also have deep lacerations to your wrists from overly tight restraints and a cut above your eye. Oh, and you were bitten." Spencer stared at the pale blue blanket as the gears turned in his brain.
"Did you find her?"
"We did. Spence-" JJ's voice trailed off as she realised Spencer had moved his steely stare to her.
"I knew I was being stalked, and you didn't believe me. Of all the people I thought would understand, it was you, Jennifer. Instead you cast my concerns to the side like yesterday's trash. The worst of it is, Lila had been watching me for over ten years. She held her obsession for a decade. But what I can't work out, is how she knew about me being in court accused of murder. Only the BAU knew about my murder charge." JJ felt lost for words. Spencer's face had hardened as he searched her eyes for an answer, or a tell. His stare was almost accusing, "What aren't you telling me?"
"Lila moved to DC a year ago and became a cleaner in Quantico. She's likely to have been listening to our conversations and we weren't any the wiser. I'm sorry, Spence. Believe me when I say that I wish I could reverse the last few days." Spencer snorted derisively and lay back into his pillows. He dropped his arms to his sides, igniting the fire in his arm. He gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut. Sweat beaded his brow, "Spence? Are you okay?"
"Peachy," pressed out Spencer through clenched teeth.
"You could have some low level pain relief, you know." Spencer let out a sarcastic laugh which chilled JJ to the bone.
"Sure. It almost sounds like you want me addicted again." Tears brimmed on JJ's lower lashes.
"No! Spence! How could you think that?"
"You asked me if I was hooked on Valium. Now you're trying to encourage me to take narcotics. You know how much my Dilaudid addiction screwed with my life." Spencer reached up and started to detach the multi-coloured EKG leads. The machine let out a high pitched whine. The wires hung loosely from the monitor. He ripped out his IV from the back of his hand, blood trickling over his pale skin. JJ was frozen to the spot.
"Spence? What are you doing?"
"Getting out of here." Spencer grabbed his braced knee with both hands and swung it out of the bed. Sweat tracked down the back of his neck, sliding under the collar of his hospital gown. As he tried to ease himself to his feet, his legs gave way, sending him crumpling into a heap on the floor. Pain shot through his broken wrist and his injured knee.
Instead of trying to get himself up from the floor, Spencer curled in on himself. He was unable to stop the tears that streaked his face or the shakes of his shoulders with each wracked sob. The weight of the situation and his helplessness finally collapsed on him like a tonne of bricks. JJ was unsure of how to approach. Spencer was clearly angry at her, and rightly so, but as she saw him lying there in the foetal position, she knew she would have to tackle him like she would do if it were Henry or Michael. She knelt down next to him on the floor and brought her head down to his level. She swept all of her hair over one shoulder.
"Spence? It's okay to be angry with me. Hell, I would be too. But please, let us help you. I don't like seeing you suffer. You put up these walls and you shut us out, just like you did with Mexico-" Spencer's shaking stopped. He turned his crimson, tear-stricken face to look at JJ. His watery, hazel eyes blazed with fury. His breaths came slow and ragged. Well done, Jennifer...