Monday morning had seemed to come all too quickly for the team. Especially Hotch. He hadn't slept particularly well over the weekend. His mind had been with Reid in the hospital, Maloney 's confession and anxiously anticipating news from the raids. The news that Reid and Morgan had a breakthrough yesterday was more than welcome, but there was still a long road ahead.
He was once again distracting himself with paperwork when he heard a knock on his door, he looked up to find the FBI Director stood in his doorway. His face was drawn into a deep frown.
"Morning Jack. Is everything okay?" Hotch frowned in return. Fickler entered and closed the door behind him. He had two files in his hand.
"Not really, Aaron. Can I sit down?"
Hotch gestured to the chair. "Of course." His chest tightened in anticipation of the news he was going to hear.
"I'll get straight to it. As you are aware, a series of coordinated raids took place yesterday at the various locations Nick Field provided to us. What we found... well, it wasn't good."
He pushed one of the files in Hotch's direction. He automatically opened it to find a series of photographs from the locations. Each photograph showed bodies, all with gunshot wounds to the head.
"What's this?" Hotch asked, his eyebrows furrowing, deepening his usual scowl.
"This is what we found at every location. Every single person on Field's list had been executed with a gunshot to the head." He flipped over to another photograph. "And this..."
His eyes widened when he saw blood smeared on the wall reading 'HELLO FBI'.
His hand raised to his mouth. He kept flicking through the pictures. "This was at every scene?"
"Yes." Jack said sombrely.
"And the victims?"
Fickler shifted uncomfortably. "No sign."
"Oh god." Hotch grimaced. He looked up at Jack with angry eyes. "What has Field had to say?"
"He was as surprised as any of us."
"Well, he's a good actor. He's proven that." Hotch said sardonically.
"Aaron, I think he genuinely had no idea."
Hotch couldn't stop trawling through the photographs in front of him. Each one was like a stab to his heart.
His mouth dropped open. "He's cleaning house." He said in realisation.
"It's more than likely." Fickler said with anger. "Wilks is interviewing him now. Field wasn't aware of any other men who would be involved enough to pull something like this off on Maloney's behalf. He gave us all of the names he was aware of within his immediate circle. They are all dead. So, the question is, who would do this for him?"
"He's implemented an entirely separate operation." Hotch said shaking his head. "This was planned."
"It's starting to look that way." Fickler said in a depressed tone. "We suspect this is probably some back up plan for if he ever got caught. Clean house and restart the operation under a different guise with new people."
"All good things come to an end." Hotch muttered to himself, nodding.
"What?" Fickler asked curiously.
"That's what he said to me when Morgan and I went to see him."
Fickler cleared his throat and opened the second file. "Well, that answers something for me." There were more photographs of more locations. The bodies in the images had once again been shot in the head. But this time written on the wall was 'ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END.'
Hotch rested his forehead into his hand as he leaned over the photos.
"We did find one victim of the trafficking ring... Now I want you to remain calm when you see this." Fickler gingerly pulled a photograph from the bottom of the pile. It showed a horrifically mutilated young man. The wounds all looked to be post-mortem. He had ligature marks around his limbs and strangulation marks around his neck. He was naked. He had not been shot like the others. On his chest was carved the words 'PRETTY BOY'. His physical appearance could not have looked more like Reid.
On seeing the picture, Hotch recoiled, pulling himself away from his desk. He moved to the corner of the room, standing still as stone.
There were a few moments of silence. "Aaron?" Fickler asked carefully.
"That's about Reid." He said, sickened.
"We believe so, yes." Fickler agreed quietly.
"He's telling us what he wants to do to him." Hotch said, his voice shaking.
"He's in custody, Aaron." Fickler said confidently.
Hotch spun round. "But the people who did this aren't, are they?" He pointed at the picture.
"Aaron, you and I both know the profile of a man like Maloney. I'm sorry to say this, but if he wanted to do this to your agent then he would want to be the one to do it first-hand What started out as revenge has now become a clear obsession with Dr. Reid and by extension the BAU team as whole. Especially you and Agent Morgan. Without wanting to dredge up bad memories, this is as close to a Foyet situation as we could get."
Hotch frowned. He often forgot that Fickler was an experienced profiler and had previously worked as part of the BAU. And he was right. This was reminiscent of Foyet. Reid had got his own Foyet. And the thought made him sick. He was determined for this not to end the same way.
"I have to see him." Hotch said suddenly.
"No, Aaron. Let Wilks deal with this."
"With all due respect, Director, the last time you ordered the BAU to stay away from this, how did that end?"
Fickler shot him a look. "Wilks is trustworthy, I vetted him personally."
"Trustworthy or not, the only people I trust with this are myself and my team at the moment. Maloney clearly has communications with the outside world. How else could he have passed these messages along? He's been in custody since he met the BAU and Reid, so he is communicating with someone. Have you looked into his lawyer?"
"He's clean. A couple of traffic tickets but other than that..." Fickler trailed off.
"Well, that's what these men are good at: Making everything appear clean from the outside. We have to lift the lid. We have underestimated his influence and his intelligence. I won't be making that mistake again."
"If you go to see him you will just be giving him what he wants. He's taunting you, Aaron. He wants the BAU at his beck and call as part of his sick game."
"And if I don't go? What then? He sends another message? I don't want Reid's mutilated body to be his next one."
Fickler sighed. He knew Hotch was right. But he hated it. Until Maloney was found guilty and sentenced, he clearly felt it was all still out there to play for. And he was going to keep taunting the BAU until the day came where it would no longer be of benefit to him or bring him enjoyment. Maloney clearly had a huge influence even from within the detention centre and whilst he would never admit this to Hotch, Fickler did worry about how high up his influence ran. He wondered how many more layers of government were littered with people loyal to his cause.
"Okay, Aaron. I won't stand in your way. But keep me in the loop throughout." Fickler relented.
"We need to be looking at everyone who has contact with him. Guards, agents, his lawyer, anyone could be supplying him with information. And anyone who was aware of the list Field provided and the details of the raids. We have another leak. We have seen this before. We leave no stone unturned. No one is to be trusted."
"We will, Aaron. We will do everything to get to the bottom of this."
Hotch nodded. His confidence in anyone other than his team was completely shot. He was determined not to let Maloney and his organisation pull the wool over their eyes again. He would oversee as much of this investigation as he deemed necessary, vex or please Fickler.
Hotch grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair and picked up the files from his desk then headed towards the door.
"You're going now?" Fickler asked, surprised.
"I can't see any reason to hold off." Hotch replied in a matter of fact tone.
Fickler sighed and nodded in resignation. "I'll let Wilks know you're on your way."
Hotch turned and left his office. He headed straight down the stairs and towards Prentiss sitting at her lonely desk.
"Emily. You're coming with me." He said strongly.
She glanced up, mild surprise in her expression.
"Uh, okay, Sir." She gave a slight amused smile. "And where would we be going?" She stood grabbing her bag and her jacket.
"I'll tell you on the way." Hotch's face was stern and Prentiss could tell this was serious.
"Huh." She quickly moved after him as he suddenly took off in the direction of the double doors, clearly in a rush to get to wherever they were heading. JJ approached as they were stood at the elevator.
"Hotch, I just wanted to-"
"Not now, JJ." He said firmly. He didn't even turn to look at her.
"Okay." She said unsurely, raising her eyebrows at Prentiss. She just gave a slight shrug in return indicating she was clueless also.
JJ moved away miming a phone to Prentiss as she did, she nodded confirming she would call her later. No doubt to discuss exactly what this was.
After 15 minutes of driving in silence, Prentiss couldn't take it any longer.
"So, Sir? Are you going to tell me where we're heading or am I supposed to guess?" She asked with a slight laugh.
Hotch reached into the back seats of the SUV grabbing the two files. He put them into her lap as if that would explain everything.
She opened the first file. She frowned as she looked through the multiple pictures of men shot in the head.
"Hello FBI. Wow, that's bold. Is this a case we are even involved in?" Hotch didn't answer, his hands just seemed to tighten on the steering wheel. She flicked through picture after picture of dead men. "Hotch, what is this? There's like 20 guys here. Is it gang related?"
"Maloney." Hotch said simply. "He's cleaned house."
Her mouth dropped open and she stared at Hotch for a few moments. Her brain was quickly piecing together that the raids had taken place the day before and these must be photographs of what they found. She looked back down to the photographs.
"Oh, shit." She said, stunned.
"Yeah. That's his whole organisation. Executed."
"Could be a rival organisation? And what about the victims?"
"All gone, aside from one." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "The other file covers... that."
She furrowed her brows and opened the other file. There were more photographs of assassinated men and the different wall message.
"All good things come to an end... What does that mean?" She said curiously.
"It's what Maloney said to me when Morgan and I visited him."
"Oh. So not a rival gang then." She frowned. This was very concerning. She flipped the photographs to find a picture of a young man. She gasped at the resemblance. "Oh god, for a second I thought..."
"I know." Hotch said with a deep scowl.
"Pretty boy." She read almost absent mindedly before it hit her. "This is a threat to Reid." Hotch nodded.
"He has cleaned house so nothing leads back to him and he's having fun taunting us in the process."
Prentiss shook her head in disbelief. "So, where are we going? Please tell me we're not going to see him."
Hotch flashed her a quick look. "We are going to see him."
"To what end? He's not going to tell us anything. He's destroyed almost everyone who can link him to the trafficking ring. What do you think he's going to tell us that will help? He's just going to torment us. Especially you."
"Emily, I don't need to hear it. I know what he is and what he's capable of. I've brought you with me because you are the least emotional and you keep your head in high stress situations. Don't prove me wrong."
She raised her eyebrows at his tone.
"I won't, Sir." She looked out of the window, taken aback by his attitude.
Hotch was suddenly hit with regret. He didn't mean to take it out on Emily. He was just tired of explaining his decisions.
"Look, he wants our attention. If we don't give it to him then I'm concerned his attempts to draw our attention will escalate. And I don't want that to become a reality for us." He pointed a finger towards the gruesome photograph of the young man.
Prentiss nodded. "I understand. I'm with you." She said strongly. Although she didn't feel it. She had only briefly come across this man in Reid's apartment. She had heard from Derek what kind of a man he was and she had absolutely no desire to meet him. He wasn't like the people they usually chase: fascinating examples of human behaviour. She couldn't bring herself to look at him as a subject to be studied. He was a living, breathing monster that crawled out from the shadows and tore apart her friend. He had crept inside their protective little bubble and attacked when their backs were turned, much like the boogeyman crawls out from under a child's bed at night. He had dragged Reid away from them, into the darkness, returning him broken and mangled. Even his image made her feel physically sick. And now she was going to be sat across a table from him, having to school her expressions and feign nonchalance. This was as close to impossible as she thought she was ever going to get.
She sat back in her seat and closed her eyes, steeling herself for what was to come.
When they arrived, Wilks was waiting for them.
"Agent Hotchner, Agent Prentiss." He extended a handshake and they both returned it. "Fickler told me you were coming."
"What have you got out of him?" Hotch asked, frowning deeply at Maloney through the interrogation window. Prentiss found herself staring at him in fascination. He didn't look like a sadist. He looked like your 'average' guy. The one thing that scared her about this job sometimes was how normal people could look whilst hiding the most abhorrent of personalities.
"No comment. No comment. No comment." Wilks said in frustration. "I've been trying to find out who the young man is but I'm having no luck."
"So, he hasn't claimed responsibility?"
"He hasn't claimed anything. Honestly, I'm hitting a brick wall with him. Which is pretty typical with this guy. The only time he speaks to me is to say something disgusting."
"Disgusting?" Prentiss asked, quirking her eyebrow.
"Yeah, for shock value." He cleared his throat. "Usually something from his confession. So, you know who it tends to centre around."
Prentiss' lips tightened and she nodded.
"Other than that, he doesn't speak to me. The most I've seen him talk was to you and Agent Morgan." He said turning to Hotch.
"Yeah, well that's because he's enjoying playing games with us."
"I must admit, I was surprised to hear you were coming to see him again. I didn't think you would entertain him after the whole confession debacle." Wilks said frankly.
"He's threatening Reid. I can't let that slide or risk it escalating."
Wilks nodded in understanding. "Well, no doubt he will be pleased to see you."
"Does he know we are here?"
"I haven't told him." Wilks shook his head.
"He will be expecting us." Hotch said simply, turning to Emily. "Remember, don't let him get under your skin."
She nodded. "Sir."
Hotch then turned and entered the interrogation room. Maloney automatically sat up in response.
"Agent Hotchner. What an unexpected surprise." Maloney grinned, sitting back in his chair extending his arms out in a welcome. Wilks shook his head from the other side of the glass. His gaze crawled to Prentiss. "And who is this beauty?"
"Agent Emily Prentiss." She answered coolly.
"Emily. A beautiful name for a beautiful woman." He licked his lips.
"I didn't think I would be your type." She said casually.
"Oh, you're not. But I can appreciate beauty in all its forms." He smirked. "You certainly didn't pick your agents for their skills did you, Aaron? Between this stunner, the hunky Derek Morgan and the doe eyed fuck toy, Dr. Reid, you've given yourself plenty to look at."
Hotch frowned at the man. Prentiss could feel the tension in the room. Her arms were covered in goosebumps. There was certainly nothing 'normal' about this man.
"So, what brings you here today, Aaron? I must say, an 'off the record' chat sounds very intriguing." He winked at Prentiss. She felt her spine go cold. There was something truly terrifying about this man. She found her mind wandering to him holding a gun in Reid's mouth and her blood ran cold. The thought of a gun in Maloney's hand was horrifying.
"You know what brings me here, John." Hotch answered firmly, moving to sit down at the table. Prentiss followed his lead and sat down in the chair next to him. Hotch slammed the files down on the table.
"Now what might this be?" Maloney asked with a mocking smile. Hotch gestured to the files, inviting him to open them.
Maloney flicked through the photos, his face was calm and collected. He showed no reaction.
"Whilst I appreciate the gift Agent, dead bodies do very little for me. Now a file of your young doctor, that would be a different matter." He looked at Prentiss raising his eyebrows suggestively. Hotch just ignored the taunt and pulled out the photos from the second file. He placed the wall message and the image of the young man in front of Maloney. He smirked slightly. "Now what's this?" He asked innocently.
"You know exactly what it is." Hotch said sternly.
"Well, it looks like a lovely, attractive young man who has been horrifically mutilated and a little message on a wall. Again, pretty or not, dead bodies don't float my boat."
"No, but taunts do." Prentiss said directly. "And these look very much like taunts to me." She said, putting a finger to the photos. He smiled at her, looking her deep in the eyes.
"You have beautiful eyes. They say the eyes are the window to your soul. You know who else has beautiful eyes?"
"Dr. Reid?" She said, rolling her eyes, showing that he wasn't going to get a rise out of her.
Maloney smirked again and pointed at her. "I like you."
"I'm flattered." She said dryly, looking to Hotch.
"John." Hotch said firmly, pulling his attention back to the photos again. "Who is this?" He pointed to the young man in the photo.
Maloney's face suddenly dropped and he looked every bit the monster Prentiss imagined him to be. She felt a shiver run down her spine.
"Off the record?" He asked seriously.
"Off the record." Hotch confirmed.
"I don't know, but you keep investigating and this," he put his finger on the photo of the young man, "won't just be a lookalike."
"So, this is a threat." Hotch said simply.
"Not from me. I'm in here." He held his hands up innocently.
"From who then?" Hotch scowled. Maloney simply shrugged, smiling again. Hotch continued. "You expect us to believe this wasn't done on your orders?"
"What you believe is not what's important, Agent. What you can prove, now that's a different matter. The burden of proof lies with you and if your only 'reliable' source is a disgraced FBI agent... well, I'd say it's not looking too good for you." Hotch's jaw tightened. Seeing it, Maloney smirked. "How is good old Nick, by the way? Enjoying his new life after handing your pretty little agent over to me?"
"This is a waste of time." Prentiss said turning to Hotch. "This guy knows nothing."
Maloney took a deep dramatic breath in through his nose.
"I know nothing, you say?" He fixed a firm gaze on Prentiss. She felt pinned by it.
"You just like playing games." She couldn't keep the slight shake from her voice. She hated herself for that.
"How is Spencer doing?"
"We're not here to talk about him." Hotch bit back.
"I'm glad he didn't jump. It would have seriously messed up that pretty face of his." Hotch and Prentiss couldn't keep the look of shock from their faces.
"How did you..." Prentiss trailed off.
"Oh, I know nothing." He said with another sick smile.
"You've been watching him." Hotch said angrily.
"How can I be watching him, Aaron?" He asked mockingly. "I'm in here."
"Enough!" Hotch slammed his fist down on the table. "What do you want?"
"Now that's more like it." Maloney said seriously. "I want WITSEC. Just like our friend, Nick."
Prentiss scoffed.
"Not a chance." Hotch glared at the man.
"That's not very wise, Aaron. You have no idea what you are dealing with." He rested his hands on the table, clasped in front of him.
"I know exactly what I am dealing with. A sexually sadistic psychopath who thinks that he can manipulate the FBI with taunts and veiled threats. Still desperately trying to cling on to his power from within the walls of a detention centre whilst he watches his life's work be torn away from him. All because the FBI outsmarted him and put him away. Too proud to admit that Dr. Reid was his biggest mistake. If only he'd been able to control his urges... At your foundation, you're weak. You knew he was too big a risk. But your impulses got the better of you, didn't they? You're no better than the people you provide your service to. A slave to your baser urges."
Maloney stared at Hotch for a few moments then began a slow, dramatic clap.
"Bravo, Aaron. That was quite the sermon."
"That sounds like avoidance to me, Hotch." Prentiss said with a smirk.
Maloney's gaze landed on her again. "I have no need to avoid. I know exactly who and what I am." He turned back to Hotch again. "Here's where you're wrong. I have made no mistakes."
"A narcissist too." Prentiss sat back in her chair, talking to Hotch. "Fragile ego. Unable to admit to his own mistakes."
Maloney also sat back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head casually. He looked between Hotch and Prentiss teasingly.
"So, you intended to end up in a Federal Detention Centre?" Hotch said skeptically.
"Life always places you exactly where you should be." He gave a sick smile.
"I would believe that if I didn't know that you have been desperately cleaning house to save your own skin." Hotch answered with bite. He grabbed the photo of the young man and pushed it towards Maloney. "Now, who is he?"
Maloney looked at the photo and squinted a little.
"Not familiar. Well, I am, but only because he looks eerily like someone we all know."
"If you're wanting us to consider WITSEC then you're going to have to start doing a lot better than that." Hotch said sternly. "This young man is someone's son."
"I am also someone's son, Agent Hotchner. Does that make you more compassionate towards me?"
"You do not deserve my compassion."
"I tell you who the boy is, you give me WITSEC." Maloney demanded.
"I will consider it."
Prentiss' jaw tensed; She was not expecting this. Maloney examined him for a few moments then laughed.
"I almost believed you there for a moment, Aaron. You're a good liar. I'll tell you who the boy is, just because I'm so damn impressed." He smiled. "Ryan... something. Don't know his last name. He was one of Jason's finds. Probably because he looked so much like our lovely Spencer. He really did have a thing for him. Drug addict, another thing in common." They both flinched at that. "That's all I know about him, that's all I cared to know."
"Of course, because they are just a commodity to you." Prentiss said sarcastically.
"A commodity implies that they have some sort of use."
"And he didn't?" Prentiss raised her eyebrows.
"He wasn't one of my favourites, let's put it that way." He said with a smirk. Prentiss scoffed in disgust. "Not like my Spencer."
"He's not your Spencer." Prentiss snapped, leaning forward.
"I'm in his head, Emily. That's as close to owning someone as you're going to get. I hear he was throwing himself at men in bars. It's good to know he's accepting what he is."
Hotch suddenly stood and left the room, leaving Prentiss sat staring at the man in front of her in complete shock. How did he know so much? Reid was obviously being followed wherever he went.
She now stood also, unable to put together any form of sentence that would make sense. She followed Hotch out of the room and closed the door behind her. She found Hotch pacing. Wilks was sat at a table with his head in his hand.
"He's following him. He's had people following him all this time." Hotch spoke quickly, the fear in his voice was clear.
"He's playing games with you, Agent. That's what he does. He likes to get into your head and under your skin."
"There's no way he could know what he knows if he hasn't been watching him."
"What the hell does he want?" Prentiss asked in frustration.
"He wants WITSEC. That's all he's been pushing for." Wilks sighed.
"Why didn't you tell us this?" Prentiss asked angrily.
"I preferred not to influence your interview." Wilks said simply, waving his hand dismissively.
"People don't get WITSEC because they are threatening the safety of FBI agents." Hotch snapped.
"Aaron, it is being considered by the higher ups."
"What?!" Prentiss exclaimed in horror.
"He knows every single person involved in the organisation. It's hardly surprising that they would be considering it. If they can do it for Mafia bosses then what's the difference here? We already know his organisation infiltrates multiple layers of government. WITSEC is the only way of cleaning that up. He's under threat too and very aware of it. The last thing these people will want is him in here talking to us."
"Multiple layers of government?" Hotch looked at him in disgust.
"He clearly has people everywhere. God knows how many more in the FBI. I'm starting to think we have only scratched the surface with the scale of this operation. He knew when the raids were taking place and he obviously knew exactly which names had been provided by Field. The intel he has can only have come from inside the investigation. I hate to say it but WITSEC is looking more and more likely if we want to dismantle this trafficking ring."
"This is a nightmare." Prentiss sighed hopelessly.
"He's got us exactly where he wants us, that's for sure." Wilks said with disdain.
"Fickler has not mentioned WITSEC to me." Hotch was clearly simmering with repressed fury.
"It's very much in its early stages right now. There is no guarantee."
Hotch's attention was pulled away as his phone began to ring. Looking at the screen it was an unknown number. Frowning, he answered.
"Hotchner."
There was silence on the other end.
"Hello? Agent Hotchner."
"St. Elizabeth's." A male voice said confidently on the other end. Hotch's stomach dropped and he paled. The call ended. Hotch stared at Maloney through the window, his hands shaking and clenching his phone tightly.
"Hotch?" Prentiss' voice was laced with concern.
Hotch suddenly turned and flew through the door back towards Maloney. He was sat back in his chair, a cocky smile on his face and his hands confidently behind his head.
He stared at Hotch as he watched him seethe, seemingly unable to find the words he wanted.
"Something the matter, Agent?" He asked knowingly.
"You-" Hotch's phone rang again. He looked at the screen and it was Morgan. He silenced the call and stepped towards Maloney, fury in his eyes.
"I'd answer that call if I were you, Aaron." He smirked. Prentiss was now in the room and was looking between the two men in confusion. Hotch looked at the phone again like it was going to explode. He gingerly answered the call.
"Morgan?" Hotch scowled as a clearly frantic Morgan was on the other end. "Morgan, slow down, slow down." Hotch said, turning his back to Maloney. "What?" Hotch spat. "I'm with him now." He turned looking at Maloney in shock.
"Put him on speaker, Agent."
"He wants you on speaker." Hotch said guardedly. Then he nodded as Morgan clearly accepted the request.
"Agent Morgan!" Maloney called out. "What a nice surprise!"
"Surprise, my ass! What the hell do you want?"
"Well, that's no way to speak to someone who's just trying to help you out." Maloney said with a mocking frown. "I just wanted to give you some advice."
Prentiss was still looking between Hotch and Maloney utterly perplexed. She could not figure out what was going on here.
"I don't need any advice from you, you sick fuck." Morgan spat. "I can't wait to see you in that court room to watch them lock you away. You have your fun now, because you'll never see the light of day again if I have anything to do with it!"
"Now, now. Save your energy, Derek. I think a visit to St. Elizabeth's might be in order. I have a feeling poor old Spence is having a difficult day today."
The phone went silent on the other end. Prentiss stared at the man in shock. He knows where Reid is.
"What- what have you done?" Morgan gasped; his voice was shaking now.
"I'm in here, Derek. How could I have done anything?" He teased.
"What have you done?!" Hotch ordered, banging his hand on the table. The man just smirked again. Anger sparked in Hotch and he slammed the phone down on the table, grabbing Maloney by his collar. He pulled him to his feet and shoved him against the wall. "If you have done anything to him, I swear I will not be responsible for my actions!" Hotch snarled in the man's face.
"Hotch!" Prentiss ran up to his side and began pulling at his arm trying to get him to loosen his grip. Wilks also appeared on the other side, pulling Hotch away.
Maloney just started laughing.
"I am in here, Aaron." He reiterated, straightening his top. That's all they were getting.
"I'm on my way to the hospital." Morgan said from the other end. The sound of his truck's door slamming echoed in the background.
"We will meet you there." Hotch said firmly. His glare still on Maloney.
"Send my love, Derek." Maloney said lecherously.
"Fuck you." Morgan snarled and ended the call.
Hotch went to leave the room, Prentiss followed.
"Agent Hotchner." He stopped in his tracks at the firm voice from the edge of the room. He turned to find Maloney's face had now dropped into a frown, his eyes were cold. "Periculum in mora." He said darkly. "Tick tock."
Hotch glared at the man for a few moments, a tight scowl on his face. Then he left the room. Prentiss followed shortly after.
Morgan rushed towards the doors of the ward and rang the doorbell urgently. His heart was racing. Maloney's words had been repeating non-stop in his mind.
Poor old Spence is having a difficult day today.
Morgan's mind was racing with the possibilities. Had someone gotten in to the ward? Had he been hurt? Did he have someone in there who could get access to him? Were they tormenting him? Had he been abducted? Was he alive?
Suddenly the door swung open and Susan was on the other side. She looked flushed and mithered.
"Agent Morgan. What are you doing here? Visiting hours aren't-"
"I need to see him." He pushed past her and into the ward.
"Agent!" She ran after him quickly and got in front of him stopping him in his tracks.
"We have a situation we are dealing with at the moment. You will need to come back later." Susan said quickly.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. There's been a threat to his life and I need to see that he's okay."
Her mouth dropped open. "A threat?" He tried to move around her. "Wait! Agent Morgan!" She got in front of him again. "The situation involves Spencer." Morgan finally looked at the woman. His eyes flashed with panic. "He's barricaded himself in a closet."
"What happened?"
"There was a letter delivered here for him by a David Rossi about thirty minutes ago. He is on his visitors list so one of the nurses gave it to him. The next minute he was shoving a nurse out of the closet and wouldn't let anyone in. From what we can gather he has blocked the door, probably with some of the shelving units in there. Our main concern is for his safety right now. The closet has multiple pieces of medical equipment in there, including sharp items."
Morgan's hand ran over his head. "Oh god. Does anyone know what was in the letter?"
"No. We've no idea."
"Did the nurse say what this David Rossi looked like?" Susan shook her head.
"No, I didn't think to ask as I've never met him." She shrugged.
Morgan looked up the corridor and could see a group of nurses all stood outside a door, presumably the closet door, trying to talk to someone on the inside. Heads were poking out from bedrooms all along the corridor. The patients were clearly enjoying the drama.
"Marie!" Susan called over to a nurse. "Can you tell this gentleman what this David Rossi looked like?"
She approached; a deep look of guilt was on her face. "Um, yeah. Mid-thirties, he was wearing a baseball cap-"
"That's not him. Dammit! How could you be so stupid? Do you not check IDs?"
"I'm really sorry." Marie said, her eyes watering up.
Morgan just pushed past the women. "I need to talk to him."
"Please, Agent Morgan, let us deal with this. We can remove him safely!" Susan said very much aware that she was responsible for his welfare.
"This is an FBI matter now. Two more agents are on the way. I suggest you let them in when they arrive." Morgan said firmly as he continued down the corridor.
Susan continued to follow him.
As they drew closer, Morgan could hear the staff discussing their options.
"We will have to force our way in." Said a large nurse.
"But could we end up hurting him?" Olivia said with concern. She had been the nurse he had forced his way past into the closet.
"No more than he's probably hurting himself right now." Said Belinda callously. "He could be slicing himself to bits in there." She shook her head in disgust.
The male nurse knocked loudly on the door. "Spencer! I'm giving you one last chance to open this door."
Morgan was suddenly between the man and the door flashing his FBI badge. "Get the hell away from this door, right now." He took a couple of steps towards the man, making him move away. "Go on, back up. All of you." He said angrily. He was furious at the lack of understanding some of the staff were displaying. No doubt this was just an inconvenience to their day. When he was satisfied that they were all keeping their distance, he turned and knocked gently on the door. "Reid?" He said softly. "You there?"
He heard a shaky voice from the other side of the door.
"M-Morgan. I-is that you?"
"Yeah, kid, it's me. You've not done anything to yourself, have you?"
"N-no."
"Will you let me in?" There came no answer. "Reid? You still there, man?"
"I'm here." Came the small voice.
"You got a letter? Is that why you're in the closet?"
"I'm scared, Morgan." The pathetic voice on the other side of the door made Morgan's chest tighten. He glanced to Susan who looked at him sympathetically.
"Can you tell me what it said?"
"I-it's from him."
Morgan's eyes closed. "Maloney?" No answer. "...Reid?"
They heard the sound of paper on the floor, suddenly an envelope was slipped out under the door. Morgan reached down and grabbed it.
The envelope has his name in black marker: 'SPENCER'. Morgan swallowed as he opened the envelope, inside there were photographs. They were photographs of Reid, taken by what could only be a long-range lens. They were photographs of him in hospital, sat in a chair by the window. His face was lit up by the sunshine. The young girl Tiffany appeared to be next to him in one. He was holding his arm out and looking at his scars while she was clearly talking to him. The second showed him resting his head back with his eyes closed. This one was zoomed in more than the first. The last one was a close up of his face. He was gazing out of the window, his eyes looked sad and lost. The photos were a direct taunt that they knew exactly where he was, if the delivery of the envelope to the door of the very ward he was staying in wasn't enough already.
Morgan flipped the photos over and found words. On the first was 'ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END', the second had 'PERICULUM IN MORA' and the close up simply read 'PRETTY BOY'.
"Fuck." Morgan said under his breath, rubbing his eyebrow in disbelief. "The nurse who took the envelope will need to give a description to my colleague when he arrives. We will need CCTV footage also." Morgan said to Susan. She nodded.
"Olivia, go and get Marie please." She said softly. This situation was obviously incredibly serious.
"I will contact security about the footage." Pippa spoke from further up the corridor where she had been observing the situation.
"Reid? I know you're scared but can you please come out? I need to see you're okay, kid."
Morgan heard a loud scraping sound from the other side of the door. A few more scrapes followed as he clearly moved something heavy out of the way. When all went silent, Morgan tried the door. The handle turned and the door opened. He found Reid stood in the corner of the closet, his back to the wall, brandishing a scalpel. His hands were shaking and there was a mad look in his eyes.
"Close the door, close the door!" He said quickly and anxiously.
"Woah, Reid, okay, okay." Morgan quickly closed the door to the worried faces who had taken in Reid with the weapon. He held his hands up to show him he was no threat. "Reid, are you going to give me that?"
Reid slid down the wall, his knees coming up to his chest. He held tightly on to his weapon.
"I need it." He said shakily. "I'm not safe here." He whispered.
"Reid, you are safe with me." He moved in closer, which didn't take much, the closet was incredibly small. "Please give me the scalpel."
"Will this ever be over, Morgan?"
Morgan frowned. He didn't even know about the confession yet.
"It will, Reid. I promise. We will end it. But right now, I need you to be strong, okay?"
"I can't." He said brokenly.
"Yes, yes you can be." Morgan said reassuringly.
"I wouldn't survive it, Morgan." He shook his head and tears ran down his face.
Morgan's palms started to sweat. The thought of anything happening to Reid again was his worst fear. He knew Reid's words to be true. He couldn't take anymore. He moved in right in front of Reid and knelt down to his level. "I will never let anything happen to you ever again. Do you hear me? They are just taunts. Maloney is in the detention centre. I will keep you safe, I promise."
"But you couldn't keep me safe from them." Reid whispered. It was like a stab to Morgan's heart to hear those words. He knew Reid didn't mean them hurtfully. It was something they both knew to be true. He'd been completely outmatched by the man. They all had.
"I will never allow that to happen again, Reid. I promise you. Now, please give me this." He reached and gently took Reid's hand. He allowed him. He slipped his hand down to his fingers and loosened his grip on the scalpel, taking it away from him. He went to the door. "I'm just going to pass this out, okay?" Before Reid could protest, he opened the door meeting with Susan's worried gaze. "Take this, please." He carefully handed the scalpel out to her and closed the door again. "Okay. Do you think we can get you out of here and into your room at least? Hotch and Emily are on their way and I don't think they'd fit in here too." Morgan said with a light smile, trying to lift the mood a little.
Reid looked to the door cautiously. "I don't know if I can."
"Well, you can't live in here forever." Morgan moved over and extended his hand out to his friend. "Trust me, Reid. Everything will be okay. We're going to go to your room and close the door. I will be with you the whole time."
"Okay." Reid answered shakily, nodding his head a little. He took Morgan's hand and allowed him to pull him up.
"You want a hug first?" Morgan asked, feeling how shaky he was. He definitely needed some comfort. Reid just nodded. "Okay, kid." He wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pulled him in tightly. "We'll keep you safe." He felt Reid relax a little into the hug and his arms wrapped around his lower back. Morgan rubbed soothing circles on his back for a minute, then pulled away. "Okay, you ready?"
"Yeah." Reid said, grabbing Morgan's hand for support.
Morgan knocked on the door to alert those outside. "Okay, we're coming out. We're going straight across to his room." Morgan's voice was firm and begged for no argument. The instruction was obvious: 'Stay out of our way'. He gingerly opened the door to make sure they weren't blocked, seeing they had cleared the way for him, he opened the door further. Reid kept his gaze down as he was guided by Morgan across the hall and into his room opposite. Morgan automatically closed the door behind them. He took Reid straight to his bed and sat him down. "Good job, kid." There was a gentle knock at the door. Susan was peering in through the glass.
She cautiously stepped into the room. "I'm sorry, but I really have to be in here after what just happened. I need to see that he's okay." Morgan looked to Reid to see if it was okay. "I'm afraid it's not a choice." She said apologetically. "He's still under assessment and I am responsible for his welfare." Morgan nodded. He couldn't argue with a 5150 hold as much as he might have wanted to at that moment.
Another knock at the door came and Olivia popped her head in. "I have two Agents here." She looked behind her. "Hotchner and Prentiss." She confirmed.
"Okay. Thanks." Morgan smiled politely.
They entered and Prentiss headed straight to Reid. "Reid, I feel like I haven't seen you in forever." She hugged him and he returned it. He was trembling underneath her touch so she squeezed him tighter not wanting to let go. She found herself pressing a kiss into his hair. She hadn't seen him since before his suicide attempt and she just wanted to hold him for all eternity and keep him safe. She eventually let go and sat down next to him, putting a hand on his knee. He grabbed it tightly, so she covered his hand with her free one wanting to provide as much comfort as possible. Having now met Maloney, she could easily imagine the terror he must have felt being completely at his mercy.
"Reid. You okay?" Hotch asked with furrowed brows. Reid gave a small smile and nodded. Hotch knew that was the smile reserved only for him in his position as his 'superior'. The smile he affectionately called in his head 'Reid's brave face'. He moved and put a supportive hand on his shoulder. The 'brave face' really wasn't necessary and the fact he had pulled it out right now made Hotch just want to hug him. "What's happened?" Hotch asked, looking to Morgan. Morgan held out the envelope to his boss.
"Delivered by a 'David Rossi'." Morgan's fingers mimicked speech marks.
Hotch scowled as he looked at the images and read the messages on the back. He then passed them to Prentiss who sucked in a breath upon seeing them. Reid slumped onto his side on the bed as soon as she had let go of his hand. He adopted his comfort position of knees to his chest. Morgan watched him carefully. He didn't like Reid like that. It meant that he was dancing on the edge of a shutdown. He moved over and sat next to him on the bed, stroking his head.
"Stay with us, kid. Okay?" Reid nodded.
"We have some things to discuss. There have been... developments. And I think given the circumstances it's best if they are discussed openly and no one is left in the dark." Hotch looked pointedly to Reid. Hotch pulled up a chair close to Reid. "Reid, can you sit up for me? I need to know that you're understanding what I'm telling you." He knew he wouldn't refuse. Morgan shifted to allow Reid to sit up. Hotch was directly in front of him now. Morgan put his arm around his back for moral support. "Okay, I don't want to keep anything from you, Reid. But some of the things I'm going to tell you are not good."
Susan cleared her throat drawing the attention her way. "Agent, I don't think-"
"I want to know." Reid said firmly. "I need to know what's going on." He nodded to Susan to reassure her. She frowned and sat back in her chair. She was not happy about this at all but these were no normal circumstances. If she was honest, she was out of her depth.
"Okay, Reid. Well firstly, the confessions." Reid stared into Hotch's eyes. "They are all inadmissible." Hotch looked down as he said it, the guilt was plain to see. Reid barely reacted.
"Okay. So he's going to plead not guilty." Reid said simply.
"We don't know. He hasn't said that, but I think it's likely." Hotch looked at Reid awaiting a reaction. Morgan rubbed his back comfortingly.
"I expected nothing else. I told you not to bother seeing him." Reid said coldly.
"Nothing is set in stone, but I do think you may be right."
"So, a trial then." Reid took a deep breath, steeling himself.
"We'll be with you every step of the way." Prentiss said reassuringly.
Reid just kept staring at Hotch. "His arraignment?"
"Two weeks from today."
Reid nodded thoughtfully. "Okay."
"There's more." Hotch continued. Morgan felt a shiver run down Reid's spine, but his expression didn't falter. "Field is now in WITSEC. He gave the names of 30 men involved in Maloney's operation. A series of coordinated raids took place yesterday." He took a pause, really not wanting to say this out loud. "Every single man on the list had been executed with a bullet to the head." He cautiously pulled the files out from behind him.
Morgan's mouth dropped open. "What?" He grabbed the file and quickly opened it, flicking through the photos. Reid also took them in, nodding as he did.
"House cleaning." He said devoid of emotion.
"It looks that way, yes." Hotch said sternly.
Reid smiled a tight lipped smile and nodded. He clearly was not surprised.
"'Hello FBI'. That son of a bitch. He's executed every single one... what about the victims? Did they find any?" Morgan asked, clearly concerned.
"Only one." Hotch pulled the other file out from behind him now. "I'm not sure about this." Hotch said looking between Morgan and Reid.
"Show me." Reid said strongly.
Hotch opened the file to the writing on the wall and the image of the dead young man.
Reid's mouth dropped open. "He-That was on one of the photos I was sent." He said, referring to the words written in blood. Hotch nodded.
"He said it to us when we met him to get his confession. I think these executions were what he was hinting at."
Reid grabbed the picture that seemed to have Morgan in complete shock. He couldn't stop staring at it. Reid took it in and looked back to Hotch.
"This is a surrogate." He took a deep breath. "For me." Hotch's eyes softened and he nodded.
"It's a threat." Hotch saw Reid's hands start to shake but he had to give him his due, he was keeping it together incredibly well. "Maloney's words were, 'if you keep investigating this, then it won't just be a lookalike'." Morgan looked at Hotch in shock and put his arm around Reid's back again. He jumped slightly.
"This can't be happening." Morgan said breathlessly.
"He has his reasons." Hotch said cynically. "He wants WITSEC."
"What?!" Morgan said furiously. "No fucking way!"
Reid dropped the photograph and rubbed at his eyes and then his face, his hands came to rest on his mouth and he sat forward leaning on his elbows.
"I've been told by Wilks that the higher ups are considering it." Reid laughed a little at this. "They believe he has men in many layers of government, including some still in the FBI. He knew when the raids were taking place and clearly, he knew every name on Field's list. They are worried about how deep this runs and Maloney is probably the only person who could expose them all."
"You're not saying you agree with this, Hotch?!" Morgan snapped.
"Not a chance. I'm just explaining their reasoning." Reid was silently staring, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. Hotch put a soft hand to his knee. "Reid?"
"So, he either gets WITSEC or I end up dead. Those are essentially our choices right now."
They all flinched at the directness of his words. "That's what he would have us believe." Hotch said despondently. "Obviously we have other options, but those are the ones he is playing with."
"What other options?" Reid asked depressively.
"We keep you protected and we move forward with the investigation. We don't let him threaten or taunt us anymore." There was a haunted look in Hotch's face when he said it that Reid seemed to pick up on. He looked to Prentiss and she was wearing a similar expression.
"You went to see him, didn't you?" They both nodded.
"We've just come from there. I had a phone call from someone saying the name of your hospital, Garcia is trying to trace it now. And Maloney told us you would be having a bad day. That's how we knew to head here."
"And I got a call saying that Maloney wanted to speak to me." Morgan said angrily. "He set the whole thing up perfectly."
"Periculum in mora. Danger in delay." Reid muttered. "This is never going to stop, is it. This is going to go on and on until he gets what he wants. Then he can disappear and start a whole new life in WITSEC." A tear escaped his eye now and Hotch felt a huge pang of guilt. He really hadn't wanted to tell Reid any of this, but he'd gotten in trouble so many times before for not sharing pertinent information, he really didn't want to betray him again.
"I'm so sorry, Reid. We have a fight on our hands."
Reid's hands shook and he looked seriously at Hotch. The pain in his eyes took the older man's breath away. "How did you do it, Hotch?"
He frowned in confusion. "Do what, Reid?"
"Get through Foyet? Knowing that at any time he could be waiting for you somewhere?"
Hotch took a anxious breath. "Well, I don't think it was any secret that I struggled with it."
"No, but you still went to work, did your job. How did you do it? I'm scared to even leave this room." Reid said, the shame and embarrassment was clear in his face.
"I had to keep going for Haley and Jack, Reid. I dare say if it wasn't for them and the focus that gave me, I don't think I'd have gotten out of bed in a morning. There's no shame in being scared..." Hotch took a deep breath; this was a big thing for him to admit. "I was terrified."
"Yeah, for Haley and Jack." Reid added.
"No, I was terrified. Him getting into my apartment like that showed just how vulnerable I was. I installed all new security, multiple locks, I slept with my gun at my bedside every night, if I slept at all. Reid, I was a mess."
Prentiss and Morgan looked at him in concern.
"Hotch, why didn't you tell us any of this?" Morgan asked gently.
"Because it was important to me that you were all able to focus on your jobs."
"I don't think I have that same strength." Reid said sadly.
"Reid, I didn't go through what you've been through. Trust me when I say, you've been stronger than I would have been in the same scenario." Hotch looked him deep in his eyes. Morgan rubbed Reid's back.
"You don't realise how strong you are, Reid." Prentiss said in agreement.
"What am I doing in here then?" He dropped his gaze shamefully. Another tear ran down his cheek.
"Recharging your batteries." Hotch said with a small smile. Reid looked at him and then smiled, huffing out an amused breath. He closed his eyes, more tears escaped and he nodded.
"Recharging my batteries." He repeated with a small smile. He seemed to like that idea.
"So, what's the plan, Hotch?" Morgan asked, squeezing Reid's shoulder.
"Wilks will be looking into anyone who comes into contact with Maloney, including guards at the detention centre. I'm going to coordinate with him to look into anyone who had knowledge of the raids and Field's list. Garcia is tracing the calls to our phones to see if we can get a lead on those. If we can get the CCTV footage from here then hopefully we can locate who delivered the letter. We need to pull this operation apart piece by piece. We should be getting forensic evidence back from the locations soon." Hotch turned to Susan. "We need this ward on lockdown. No one enters without an ID matching a name on the visitors list. There will be a list of approved staff required on the ward and they are the only ones who will be allowed entry."
Susan nodded.
"On your discharge, you will stay with Morgan. We will need to install some extra security at the house and I will order an armed guard 24/7. I will stay at the house with you until the arraignment and then we will review it again."
"You don't have to do that, Sir." Reid said, feeling very awkward.
"Yes, I do. And if I can't be there, I will make sure someone else can be. I want you to feel as safe as possible."
Reid looked down.
"Thank you."
"I am happy to stay too if you need me." Prentiss smiled. "The more the merrier."
Reid gave a small smile and rested his head on her shoulder. She wrapped her arm around him giving him a small squeeze.
"The one thing we have going for us is that he would not be satisfied to let someone else kill you." Hotch said without faltering. Susan couldn't quite believe how easily such words left the mouths of these people. It was another world to her.
Reid nodded against Prentiss' shoulder. "He would want to do it himself." She could feel his body tense up.
"But that doesn't mean that he won't send a warning. So, we're taking no risks."
"If I may?" Susan stood and approached the agents. "I assessed Spencer this morning, given the support network he has in place, I'm quite comfortable in saying that I will be happy to discharge him today. I do not believe him to be a risk to himself, which was the sole reason for the 5150." The words seemed ironic, given that he was clearly still very much at risk.
Reid lifted his head from Prentiss' shoulder, he looked surprised. "Really?"
"That's great news, Reid!" Prentiss smiled, nudging him with her shoulder.
Susan nodded. Morgan smiled but couldn't help the feeling that there was an element of it being easier for the hospital to just discharge him, given the circumstances.
"There will be conditions. Just because you are being released, it doesn't mean I think you are mentally well, Spencer." He looked down in shame. "You will require therapy as an outpatient. This can be done at home or you can come into the hospital. That is up to you but I will be recommending therapy five times a week to start with."
"Five times?" Reid groaned. Prentiss squeezed his shoulder.
"Just for the first couple of weeks or until the therapist feels they can start reducing the sessions."
"He will do it." Hotch said firmly, eyeing Reid. He huffed but nodded in acceptance. "When do you think he will be released?"
"It will be later today, in a few hours. I have some paperwork to complete and the referral to the outpatient team to do."
Hotch nodded. "Good, that gives us a few hours to get things in place. Morgan, I'm going to need you at home ready for the security measures." Morgan nodded; his brows furrowed. "You are okay with this, aren't you? They will be installing a lot of equipment."
Morgan looked shocked that he would even ask. "Hotch, whatever it takes. It's just a house."
Reid looked at Morgan guiltily. "Are you sure, Morgan?"
"Kid, I'd blow the damn thing up if I thought it would keep you safe."
Susan smiled a little. It made her happy to know he had such protective people around him.
"You have good friends, Spencer." She said pointedly. He smiled.
Prentiss wrapped her arms around him and gave him a big kiss on his cheek. He blushed.
"He knows." She said, squeezing a smile out of him. "At least he'd better."
Reid laughed a little, giving the first full smile Susan had seen. It changed his face completely and for the first time she could see what a happy Spencer looked like. His smile lit up a room. It was sad that had been so cruelly knocked out of him.
"I do. I swear." Reid said in joke surrender.
"Right, kid. I'm gonna head. Let's get this all sorted. I will see you later." Morgan put a hand to his shoulder. "You be okay?"
"Yeah." Reid said quietly, his smile dropping.
"I'll stay with him. If that's okay?" Prentiss looked to Susan. She nodded.
"Given the circumstances I think that's probably for the best." Susan said.
Morgan looked at Reid for a few moments, obviously not keen to leave him. "Okay." He kissed him on the top of the head. "See you later."
Reid watched him leave and Prentiss felt a shudder go down his back. There was that co-dependency that Hotch and Rossi had mentioned to the group.
"I've got to make some calls. Excuse me." Hotch left the room.
Prentiss turned to Reid and smirked. "So, is there anything fun to do in here?"