Part 3
William Reid couldn't stop shaking once Agent Morgan and Agent Hotchner had left. Agent Morgan in particular had scared him silly the way he kept glaring at him, Agent Hotchner also looked upset, but he was apparently better at controlling his emotions, or that was just what the two men had wanted him to believe. They had questioned him thoroughly, but even though he hadn't confessed they had informed him that they had a enough evidence to send him to prison for a very long time, certainly long enough that he wouldn't be leaving, except in a wooden box. From what he understood the team was especially close knit and apparently Agent Morgan was rather fond of Spencer, though William wondered how that could be, because it wasn't like he was anything but a walking robot after all. Smarter than any 10 people put together, which to him meant that he should just be put down like a rabid dog to make it easier on those of more ordinary intelligence. He didn't believe that people who were as smart as the boy he had kidnapped deserved to live, because it made it harder for ordinary people like himself. He thought all those with such a high intelligence were an abomination, not even considering that people like Spencer were an evolution of human intelligence, ever since mankind had worked itself out of the primeval ooze millions of years ago. He had wished for years that he had switched his own son with another baby one of more normal intelligence like himself, but how had he been supposed to know?
It never even occurred to William Reid that there was nothing wrong with being super intelligent or with the fact, that just because Spencer tended to internalize his emotions didn't mean he didn't have them. Of course, that shouldn't be surprising, because he didn't care about anyone except himself, certainly not his wife or the son he had kidnapped from another man.
"There is really nothing I can do for you, Will," the lawyer told the other man, obviously disgusted by what he had learned. "I might be able to get them to lessen the charges, but considering the man's son you kidnapped is an FBI agent and was when he was born, I don't think that's too likely, because even if they did I doubt that David Rossi or his son would agree. It's not like I can intimidate them into lessening the charges like I could someone else, as they're well-versed in the law and know their rights, so subtly threatening them would be useless. David Rossi at least has enough pull within the FBI to make the charges stick, since you actually did commit the crime and this is very personal to him, well, I can see him using his influence to make sure that you spend the rest your life in prison and you're only lucky that the death penalty isn't on the table. The fact, that you made him and his now deceased wife believe his son had died just because you decided to switch him with your own, well, you're going to be facing charges of emotional trauma as well as the kidnapping one. The BAU team is nothing if not thorough and they have already gathered enough evidence against you to see you in prison for many years, even without your confession."
"But isn't the evidence suspect considering that father and son are the ones at the center of the case," William pleaded.
"Maybe under normal circumstances," the lawyer said, "but both men have impeccable reputations and have put many criminals behind bars in their careers, so in this case I don't believe that that line is going to work on the judge. Both have been in law enforcement for years and a cop has to know how to be objective, even if it doesn't always work like that, since sometimes you can't help but get personally involved, depending on circumstances. Both men have every right to want to punch you for what you did and likely beat you within an inch of your life, but neither one is likely to do anything that will risk their case or get themselves in trouble with their bosses. I suspect that's why neither one of them has been in here to interview you, because they're likely not sure that they can control their tempers and they wouldn't want to be accused of police brutality or of forcing you to confess, which are accusations I could present to the judge if certain events happened so I could."
William slumped and knew that he was going to end up in prison likely for the rest of his life since he was already well into his 50s.
"No, both men are smart enough to stay as far away from that particular aspect of the case, as they can," the lawyer added.
"What are the odds that father and son would actually run into each other," William muttered to himself not paying his attorney any attention.
"Showing that you were truly sorry for what you did all those years ago would go a long way to giving you less time in prison, but I can already tell that you're not sorry at all, not really. You actually believe it was your God-given right to do what you did," The lawyer said in sudden realization, looking disgusted.
"I needed a son carry on the family name," William said.
"And there were other ways to go about it, like adoption or even IVF if you insisted on someone with your DNA. Alright, IVF wasn't as much as option back then, as there wasn't as much of success rate so many years ago, but nowadays, it's quite common for people to go through it," the attorney said shaking his head in disgust. "You're an attorney and you certainly make enough money to afford IVF, even if I know it's an expensive process. You could even have gotten married again and had another child. Stealing another man's son was not the way to go William and I feel sorry for the family that grieved for their son's supposed death not realizing that he was still alive. You made another family go through hell, by making them believe that their son had died. I'll do my job and try my best to at least get the judge to not give you the rest of your life in prison, but only because it's my job. Personally, I'm totally disgusted with your actions, just as any decent person would be."
The attorney didn't mention that he wasn't going to go out of his way to get his client off, although he would try to the best of his ability, but he would be perfectly happy if this piece of scum spent the rest of his life in a federal prison, somewhere like Gitmo.
The lawyer didn't think that the Senior Reid would be going to one of the toughest federal prisons on the planet, but so long as he was put away he would be happy. He couldn't help but think about his own children who were mostly grown and out on their own and wondering how he would have reacted if he had discovered he had a son he had believed had died and then he turned out to be alive.
"It was spur of the moment," William admitted still not looking very sorry for his actions of nearly 3 decades ago.
"That doesn't make it right. You didn't just commit a minor crime, you committed a federal offense, so you can expect that organization to come down on you like a hammer. No federal judge in the world is going to let you off with just a slap on the wrist. It's not like you just committed minor theft, which is a lot of times just gets you community service depending on the circumstances."
"I'm screwed," William said.
"Yes, you are," the lawyer told him. "As I promised I'll do my best for you, but I'm not sure how much I can do, as it will all depend on a lot of different factors."
William Reid didn't answer and simply put his head into his hands, knowing that he was completely at the mercy of two people who weren't going to show him the least remorse considering he had kidnapped the older agent's son and it didn't help his case that that same son was now also a member of the FBI.
No, he expected to be shown absolutely no mercy, as he knew those two would bring as many charges against him as they possibly could no matter how minor.
~~~Criminal Minds~~~
The attorney approached the BAU team and asked to speak to David Rossi and his son for a moment.
The others looked at each other and Hotch nodded, letting the other two know it wouldn't do the case any harm if they talked to the attorney for a minute so Dave and Spencer rose from the table.
Once they were relatively alone the attorney said, "I just want you to know that I'm totally disgusted by my client's actions. I'll do my job and defending him, as that's what I'm paid for, but if he gets put in prison for the rest of his life, well, I'll privately consider that a victory. I never thought that Will was capable of such a serious crime, but then, I suppose, I realize I don't know the man at all. I just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry for what the two of you went through, but I'm still going to do my best to get my client off. Normally, I would keep my personal opinion to myself, but in this case I felt both of you deserved to know."
"We understand," Dave said glancing at Spencer who looked like he did indeed understand where the lawyer was coming from if his expression was anything to go by.
"That's all I wanted to say and then give you my condolences for what happened, even if it happened nearly 3 decades ago," the attorney added.
"Thank you for that," Spencer said finally.
"Yes, thank you. You certainly have more compassion then most attorneys I know," Dave said.
"It just made me think about what if same thing happened to my own kids? I still have a teenage daughter at home who won't be starting college until next year."
"Still thank you for your condolences, even if we know you will do your best to get your client off, but then that's your job," Spencer said, shaking the attorney's hand Dave doing the same.
"So what did Mr. Silverston want?" Hotch asked.
"He wanted to give us his condolences and said that he's totally disgusted by his client, but that he will do the job he's being paid for. I get the feeling though that he won't try too hard to get William Reid off," Dave explained.
"Well, that was really nice of him," JJ said smiling.
"He also took something of a risk, as he could get in trouble for what he said, even replaced, as the Senior Reid's attorney," Aaron said. "I'm not saying that it wasn't very nice of him, but it could still get him in trouble, because he's working for the man we're going to do our best to put in prison."
"He didn't give us any privileged information," Spencer told Hotch who nodded.
"And normally, he wouldn't've said anything, but he said it made him think of his daughter who goes to college next year and what if she had been kidnapped as a baby? What if somebody had decided to switch their daughter who was dying with another child that looked similar? That was something that I could understand and he has my respect for even going as far as he did," Dave added.
"No, one was near enough to hear what he said other then Dave and I and I'm certainly not going to say anything, because I could tell he was sincere," Spencer said.
"No, I won't say anything either, because he was actually nice enough to come and apologize for what his client did, even though he had nothing to do with it, something that we know most attorneys would never do no matter how they actually felt," Dave added quietly.
Hotch nodded and the team went back to work.
~~~Criminal Minds~~~
Las Vegas court
Several months later
The trial had been going on for several hours, when the attorney that was presenting the case said, "Your honor, I call Dr. Spencer Reid to the stand. I believe that you will understand why I request his testimony, once you hear some memories from his childhood. William Reid kidnapped Agent Rossi's son and yet from what I've learned treated him worse then mud on the bottom of his shoe. Mr. Reid didn't kidnap Agent Rossi's son because he wanted a child since his own was going to die due to a medical problem that was unfixable at the time. No, he kidnapped Agent Reid just to have a son to carry on the family name, even though there was plenty of other ways he could've had another child, even back so long ago."
"But Agent Reid's memories are bound to be distorted at least, if not faded to the point that he couldn't possibly remember what happened to him so long ago," The Senior Reid's attorney protested.
"Mr. Silverston does have a point," the judge said.
"Your honor, I have with me here a document that certifies that Agent Reid's memory is eidetic, and so good that he has often testified in court on things he sees or hears in his work. Agent Reid remembers his childhood with perfect clarity and in fact, he'll never be able to forget it."
The attorney didn't say so, but he definitely sympathized, because Agent Reid would never be able to forget anything he experienced, no matter how horrendous.
The judge gestured for the lawyer to approach the bench so he did so and handed over the document.
The judge read it then nodded.
"I will allow this," the judge decided. "Agent Reid's memory has indeed been certified by the appropriate authorities."
Silverston tried to protest, though it was clear his heart wasn't in it, but the judge waved him away showing him the document he had been handed.
"Agent Reid?"
"Yes, your honor?" Spencer asked respectfully, as he rose from where he was sitting.
"Are you willing to give us some memories of your childhood with the Reids? I'm not going to order you too as I know those memories are probably painful for you."
"Yes sir, I'm willing. Anything to put the man responsible for kidnapping me from my real family behind bars," Reid answered firmly.
William Reid who had been listening silently put his head in his hands and knew then that his goose was completely cooked. He had kidnapped a baby from the hospital switching it with his own who was dying and to top it off he hadn't treated that child, even halfway decently. No, he had left it to Diana to give the child love and affection and he had gone out of his way to make snide little comments about the child once he had realized how intelligent he really was. He hadn't done a thing when the boy had been severely bullied and had expected him to handle it, even though he had just been a child at the time.
He hadn't wanted to go to the bother, figuring it would teach the boy how to defend himself, but he knew intellectually that it was the parents responsibility to protect the child and from what he knew the bullying had been way over the top of what was normal in any high school. Being knocked down to be trampled on or pushed into lockers was way past what was considered normal bullying. He was surprised that the teachers had done nothing about it, but then, Spencer wasn't one to air his troubles to any authority figures. He knew very well that was a lesson that the boy had learned from him, since he had never done anything at all to protect him, like a good parent should their child.
William still wondered what the odds were that the real father would run into his son, the son he had believed was dead, not that it mattered really, since it had happened, even though the odds had to be against it.
Spencer was sworn in as soon as he had taken his seat and began speaking immediately.
The Senior Reid listened, as Spencer told some of the things that happened to him as a kid calmly, his voice unemotional about how his father had never done a thing about any of them. He spoke of how his mother had used to get indigent and tried to correct the situation until she had been to ill to do so.
William felt absolutely no sympathy for any of the things that Spencer recounted on the stand, even if he knew intellectually that he was screwed, if the way the jury was reacting to Spencer's words was any indication
"I believe that's more than enough, Agent Reid," the judge said after ten minutes, looking outraged at what he was hearing and Spencer nodded falling silent.
"Your honor, how do we know that Agent Reid isn't lying just to get my client convicted?" Silverston asked. "He could very well be making up these little anecdotes of his childhood."
"Your honor, Agent Reid's testimony is not under scrutiny here, as not only has he been a member of the BAU, since he was 23 years old, as soon as he'd completed the FBI Academy, he has helped put numerous criminals behind bars and his reputation is impeccable. A man with his reputation has no reason to lie in a court of law, especially not when there is enough evidence to put this man away without lying."
The judge nodded agreeing with the attorney's words.
"So Agent Reid you do believe that your mother was in any way involved with kidnapping another man's child?" the attorney asked.
"No, sir, I do not, as Diana Reid never would have allowed her husband to do such a stupid thing. If she had even known that her husband was thinking about taking such a course of action she would have likely yelled at him or at least given him the lecture of his life, possibly even threatened divorce. No, I suspect that due to the drugs she was under that she had no idea what her husband had done and the schizophrenia, although it wasn't as prevalent at the time from what I know, might also have played a part. She never would have agreed to take another family's child allowing that family to believe that their child was dead. She would never have wanted a family to grieve for the loss of their child when that child was still alive."
"Very well," the judge said.
"Agent Reid, what do you believe your father's motive's were for his actions," the lawyer asked. "You are the one that knows that man that you believed was your father the best."
"I can't say for sure," Spencer said, "as I never imagined he had committed such a serious crime. I always knew that he didn't care about me or about the woman I thought was my mother either, but there is a large difference between being selfish and uncaring to committing such an act. There are a lot of selfish, uncaring people in the world that never commit a major crime, but I would postulate that he was so desperate to carry on the family name that he wasn't thinking clearly. I believe, he didn't think about his actions, not clearly, as he likely was panicking, as he knew that his wife would be unlikely to be able to have another child, because of the schizophrenia and also because she had a hard time giving birth. I know that my mother would have had to go off her medication, just like she did when she was pregnant with her son who died, as it was possible that the medication would have a detrimental effect on her pregnancy as the child might have developed problems later in life. From what I understand doing so once was very hard on her and that was before the disease was as bad as it was later in her life."
"Why do you think he just didn't get a divorce then find another wife?" the attorney asked next.
"Back when I was born, an attorney had to have an impeccable reputation and a divorce would likely have ruined his career, because values were different back then," Spencer answered causing the jury to murmur. "When he did finally leave me and my mother I was ten and I remember how much furor there was the fact that he had divorced his wife, because such things just weren't done back so long ago, not by people in certain professions anyway, but since it was the early 90s society had changed enough by that time that he kept his job and his reputation for the most part remained intact, though there was some backlash from certain sections of society."
"Did he leave you or his ex-wife anyway to provide for yourselves, since it's obvious that your mother was unable to work due to her illness," the lawyer asked.
"He did provide us money every month, the bare minimum needed for us to survive, but that was as far as it went, as I never saw him again until Agent Rossi and I realized that I wasn't William Reid's son at all," Spencer replied
"What caused Agent Rossi to realize that you were his son. After all, you had been working together for three years by that point," the lawyer asked.
"Agent Rossi and I were sharing a hotel room when we were in Los Angeles. Normally, I share with Agent Morgan, but he had taken a few days off to see his family in Chicago. I was getting undressed for bed when he noticed a birthmark I have on my left hip. This birthmark is the exact same one that his son had when he was born and while this is not a sure indicator, there were also other things he had noticed over the three years we had worked together that he had put down to coincidence. It was just the birthmark clenched it for him. Also, from my own research, my birthmark is unique, as I can find no indication that anybody else has ever had one like it, so I couldn't blame Agent Rossi for his certainty that I was the son he and his wife named Peter Daniel Rossi, a son that he had believed had died nearly 30 years ago. The blood test we had done, just confirmed, what both of us already knew."
"Thank you, Agent Reid," the lawyer said.
"Agent Reid, you can go sit back down," the judge said.
Spencer went to sit back down beside his father who had been listening closely to everything his son revealed. Spencer well knew that Dave was likely very upset at what he had heard, but wouldn't allow it to show it until they had privacy.
He suspected that the two of them would be talking, just as soon as they were done.
The trial continued, but in the end William Reid was convicted and would be spending the rest of his life in a federal prison.
~~~Criminal Minds~~~
"You did very well in court today," Dave said very proud of his son.
"I've testified in court a lot over the last few years, so it's not like it was unusual," Spencer said, downplaying the emotional impact that talking about his childhood had had on him in front of several dozen strangers.
"This was different and you know it," Dave told Spencer firmly. "Normally, you're not testifying about your own past, which is much harder then just telling the court about the evidence from whatever case is being presented. Talking about other people's crimes is way different from talking about a past that is painful. Don't think I don't know you were holding your emotions in check with an iron will as I've often done the same thing myself depending on circumstances. None of us would be able to do what we do if we didn't control our emotions at some of the stuff we hear in interviews, as some people can be really depraved. The stuff that effects us is different for every person, but when it comes to emotional trauma, that affects everybody, even if that trauma is different for every person. I know you're used to holding your emotions in check, but believe me that's not healthy. All of us have different ways of dealing with the stuff we hear practically every day."
"I'm just not used to having a parent that actually cares about my welfare," Spencer said finally. "I'm not saying my mother didn't care about me in her own way. She's on medication now I know, but still, I can't tell a lot about what I do, firstly because it would just upset her, but also because a lot of what we do is only for certain people with the proper security clearance to know."
"You can talk to me if you want, though I know that we don't have the close father/son relationship we should have," Dave said.
"We are working on it, but it's just going to take time," Spencer said.
"I know," Dave said sighing gustily. "While I'm certainly glad that justice was finally done, I still want to strangle that man with my bare hands. I know perfectly well that me wanting to do so is perfectly normal, but it doesn't stop my feelings."
"On that subject the two of us are in agreement," Spencer chuckled darkly. "Of course, in my case, it wouldn't be the first time I've wanted to strangle him, though I certainly never expected to feel those emotions again after he left when I was a child."
"I know it must have been hard for you to talk about your childhood, even a little," Dave offered.
Spencer gave him a rather world weary look, then shrugged nonchalantly and Dave thought his son wasn't going to say anything on the subject, but finally he said quietly. "It was hard to talk about some of the incidents in my childhood, even though I knew it would help put him away."
There was no reason to ask who he was, as Dave knew who his son was referring to, so he just nodded.
"It made some of my emotional scars start to heal, even if it was embarrassing at the same time to talk about my childhood in front of a bunch of strangers," Spencer revealed.
"See, talking about it does help," Dave said calmly, "and I certainly don't ever intend to reveal what you tell me to anybody else."
"I know, I trust you just like I trust the others on the team to never reveal what we learn about each other, but even though the team knows a lot about me they don't know everything. They don't know very much about my childhood, except that it wasn't very happy, but then most of us who work at the BAU didn't exactly have idyllic childhoods, except perhaps for JJ and maybe you."
"I had a relatively happy childhood," Dave agreed.
"And I know that JJ did, but as for the others no. I suppose it's what makes us so good at what we do. Makes us able to listen to people describe what they did to others without showing a visible reaction. Of course, it still affects all of us and we have to have some way to relieve what we hear if we are to continue to do what we do and not burn out," Spencer said.
"And how do you deal with what you see and hear, because you're right we have one of the toughest jobs around," Dave asked. "I know Morgan buys houses that need a lot of work before he resells them and that's his way of dealing with the horrors he sees and hears. Good physical labor."
"That method would never work for me since I'm not good at that kind of thing," Spencer said smiling a little.
"Of course, it wouldn't, because everybody is different with different abilities, interest and talents," Dave said. "Me I go hunting with Mudgie or up to my cabin to just relax and not think about work for a few days. It's my way to decompress, to put all the horrors I see on the job into a corner of my mind in a box."
"All of us compartmentalize to a certain extent," Spencer said smiling. "It certainly helps us do our jobs if we don't have all that in our minds constantly. I suppose it's good that all of us don't have everything in our minds that we see or hear on the job, as we would go slowly insane, or at least it would change us for the worst, so it's a good thing all of us have the ability to put those memories into a box and lock them away."
The two men continued to talk quietly sipping the wine that Dave had opened.
"Remember what we discussed before we finally put my father in prison?" Spencer asked finally.
"About you changing your name?" Dave said immediately.
"Yes and I decided to go with JJ's suggestion and use Reid-Rossi," Spencer said. "You've been more a father to me in the last few months then the one I grew up with ever was. I know I'm an adult but still, I have appreciated your support and the fact that you let me live my own life and make my own decisions. William Reid wanted me to go into a career as a lawyer and I knew that from the time I was very small. While I did go into law enforcement, unknowingly following my father's footsteps, it was still my decision and I know you would have supported me if I had chosen something different."
"Of course, I would have, that's what any good parent would have done," Dave agreed immediately.
"Which tells you that William Reid wasn't a good parent not even in the very beginning," said Spencer, grimly.
"I know," Dave said, "and believe me, I'm furious with him, even though he's behind bars and will be there for the rest of his life whether that's 10, 20 or 30 years. I'm hoping he lives a very long time and that one of the other prisoners in the prison he's going to will rape him again and again, since even prisoners have to get their sex someway. That might be small and petty of me, but I feel if anybody deserves it it's him."
"Even if it doesn't, he won't be leaving, except in a wooden box," Spencer said. "I can understand why you wish that fate on him, although I know you usually wouldn't wish that kind of thing on anyone, no matter what they had done, but still, in this case, I think that it's well deserved if that does happen. I can't help agreeing with you in this case, because if I had to been treated as his son my feelings would be different entirely."
Dave simply smiled and raised his wineglass in salute causing Spencer to smile a little.
"I'm happy that you've decided to change your last name to mine, even if you also keep the Reid," Dave said.
"I knew you would be. I certainly would be if I discovered I had a son that had been kidnapped shortly after his birth, but that I had believed was dead," Spencer said.
The two men were silent for awhile, as they sipped their wine.
"Also, I've decided not just to use Peter as my middle name but Peter Daniel, even though I know it will give me three names plus my surname. It seems only fair since you and your wife named me Peter Daniel Rossi, which is the name I should've grown up under. If I really didn't want to keep my first name, since that's what I've always gone by, that was given to me by the woman I thought was my mother then it would be simpler, even if I realize I'm called Reid more than half the time," Spencer said.
"I don't think that's going to change, because I think it's a good idea to keep the fact that you change your name to mine a secret unless it's necessary to reveal it. Yes, a lot of people are aware that you're my son due to the media, but still there's no reason to let it be widely known unless that's what you want," Dave agreed.
"I agree with your reasoning and I was thinking along the same lines. I think that other FBI agents would just resent me more if they really knew I was your son. Alright, they probably read the paper since most people do, but still, they could start making accusations about me getting special treatment. They could try to claim that you're the one that pulled me directly into the BAU, even though we didn't meet until three years ago. I know it was Gideon that did that, but some of those FBI agents wouldn't bother to check their facts and I just think it's trouble that we don't need. A lot of agents already resent the hell out of me, because I never served in another department in the FBI before being placed in the BAU and I just don't want to make that worse if they learn that I changed my name to yours as if I'm expecting special treatment," Spencer explained.
"Yes, I knew that a lot of other agents resented you," Dave revealed. "Aaron and I kept in contact over the years and he told me about everybody on the team, though he didn't go into detail. Of course, at the time I didn't know you were my son."
"I'm glad you didn't, because I wouldn't have wanted you to do anything about it, because that would be seen as me receiving special treatment and I'm sure that would have been your first inclination," Spencer said.
"You're right about that, but then I would have realized that you're a grown man and able to handle your own problems," Dave said. "I wouldn't have interfered once I realized that, because it just would have caused more problems in the long run. You don't normally fit the type of man that joins the FBI as most of them are alpha males or females, though I'm not saying we don't have a few like you."
"I'm well aware of it," Spencer smiled. "It doesn't matter what others think of me, because they ought too know that I wouldn't still be part of the BAU if I didn't pull my weight with the team. There is no way that Hotch would've kept me on if I didn't do my job."
Dave nodded at that, because it was very true and Spencer was a very integral part of the unit.
"Here's to getting to know each other much better and be introducing you to your brother," Dave said raising his wine glass Spencer following suit.
"I'm looking forward to meeting James," Spencer said.
"He'll be absolutely thrilled to meet you," Dave said smiling.
"So you've said," Spencer said also smiling a little.
The two men continued to sip their wine, getting to know each other much better as their feelings about William Reid's fate were pushed aside for the moment.
~~~Criminal Minds~~~