UNDER REVISION Silence in the Scars (A Criminal Minds Story)

Chapter 14: The Last Day

UPDATED: 09.04.17

Chirping birds were the first thing that Reid was aware of when he woke up. The sun streamed in through the windows. It seemed to be a perfectly normal day. Reid thought it ironic that he was supposed to die on such a nice day. He shook his head. No, his team would find him, they had to.

Tyler was fast asleep in the chair opposite Reid's. There was the sound of a car pulling up as Tyler continued to snore.

"Tyler," Reid said. It probably would not bode well for either of them if Zoe walked in on Tyler sleeping. However, Tyler remained oblivious to the encroaching danger.

The door flew open, hitting the wall with a loud thud. Tyler jerked awake, stumbling to his feet as Zoe walked in, dropping her bag on the ground near the door.

"Sleeping on the job?" She asked. "Typical, you can't even watch the prisoner correctly."

"He's not going anywhere," Tyler replied. He took a few steps away from her, but she closed the distance between them.

"But what if he had?" Zoe said. Her eyes were bright with anger. "All of our hard work would have been wasted because you decided to take a cat nap." She punched Tyler in the jaw. He stumbled back into the wall. Zoe smacked him in the face again and Tyler fell.

"Our work?" Tyler said. His voice filled with pain and anger. "You mean your hard work. You wanted to do this, you and Jack, not me."

Zoe kicked Tyler in the stomach and then jammed the gun under his chin, forcing his head up. Tyler's eyes widened. He realized he had said too much.

"If you wanted out, you should have just said so," Zoe said. Fear flashed through Tyler's eyes. "But now, you may still be useful."

Tyler didn't say anything and the second ticked by. Zoe pulled the gun away and tucked it back in the waistband of her jeans. Tyler let out a shaky breath and slumped on the floor. Zoe turned her attention towards Reid.

"Do you know what today is?" Zoe asked.

Reid didn't say anything.

Zoe cocked her head and smiled. "Today is the day that I get to kill you."

Reid still didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say, but he wasn't going to play whatever game she had in mind.

"What?" Zoe said. "Say something smart."

She took a step towards Reid, her face darkening.

"Zoe," Tyler said. He was still sitting against the wall where she had left him.

"Take a walk," Zoe said. "Don't go too far.

Tyler started to reply, but Zoe turned and glared at him and Tyler stopped talking.

"My team is going to find you," Reid said. "Even if you do kill me."

Zoe turned her attention back to Reid, smiling widely. "It speaks," she said. "And it's not a question of if, but when." Behind her, Tyler was quietly rummaging through the bag that Zoe had dropped.

"You want to know something else," Zoe said. "You are a very fascinating person Dr. Reid."

"Am I?" Reid replied. He was just trying to keep her talking at this point. Tyler held up the cell phone. He glanced at Reid and then Zoe. With a determined face he slipt out the door.

~

The sun was just starting to rise, but the agents of the BAU team were already dressed and heading to the station. The lack of sleep showed on everyone's faces. No one said it, but they were all thinking the same thing. The clock was running out.