forever and always [ spencer reid x reader]

XIII - the kidnapping

That night after returning from the warehouse we headed to the hospital at Reid's. He had to have several x-rays and we were up almost all night. Morgan tried to go looking for the unsub outside the warehouse, but there were very high cornfields outside and it was very risky, so on Hotch's orders, we let him go.

This morning is a rainy day in mid-April, it's still early, it's not even 6am, but I wanted to get up early to go see Reid and ask him a few questions about what happened the day before yesterday.

The doctors said that Reid was not yet stable, and therefore it was better to give him a day of rest. I'm sure he's asleep now, but I just wanted to see him and check his medical records before the unsub injects him with a toxic drug that knocks him out.

as soon as i get to the hospital i ask the doctors where was his room. one of them accompanies me in the elevator, being in room 232 on the second floor. Reid was awake, I could see him from the door window. He's playing chess by himself and he's talking to himself.

"he has been in this condition since yesterday, he asked us for a chessboard, and then to send this" the doctor hands me an envelope, with a letter inside.
I hide it in my jacket pocket and close it so as not to lose it.
The doctor opens the door for me, then as soon as she sees I've entered she closes it again, I don't even have time to turn around when she's gone.

Reid is too focused on chess to make eye contact with me. His eyes moved back and forth to better see all the moves he could make with a piece. he looks crazy.

"the queen kills the knight on F4" I move the queen in F4 and I remove the knight.
Reid finally looks at me, looking less crazy than before.

"you came" he says it with too much amazement, did he expect me not to come? after all we've been through?

"of course I came Spencer, we can't visit you yesterday, so I thought I'd see you today" I reply.

"however now that the knight is on F4 you can kill the bishop" I move a chess piece to the square and push the bishop away. he smiles, I think he's smiling because he didn't notice this move.

"I wanted to let the black pawns win" he says.

"did you want to checkmate with 6 pawns? because it's almost impossible" I say.

"yeah well, only that sometimes I go to preferences, it depends on how I set the board" I do it too, very often.

"Spencer, I came not only because I didn't want to leave you alone, but because I have questions for you about that night and sooner or later they have to be asked." I hold his hand, but I see his smile fading more and more.

"it all started the day before yesterday morning. I woke up early to get ready for work and wanted to call Hotch to let him know I was on my way to the office and to call him in case I had a new case early. As soon as I open the phone, I find a bunch of black and white photos taken by a very gifted camera. There were more than ten, I don't remember them all but you can have my phone I have them all in the gallery. You were in one as we were driving to work together one day, then Morgan was in another as he and I were getting in the car to go to the jet, then one taken in the city of Richmond for that case a few weeks ago. In the others it's mostly just me and one with my mom dating 6 days ago. I have never seen this person's face, I just know that he was haunting me, it was creepy and I was in a panic, I didn't know what to do, please try to understand." he looks scared, but I can understand very well that feeling, we can all understand what he's been going through.

"I'm sorry about what happened to you, but see Spencer, it happened to me and the whole team too." he looks surprised, he didn't know anything about that part.

"Seriously? What happened? But try to make a recap of what really happened because I know it would take too long for you" he looks very confused.

"I received your same messages, photos and written things, Hotch received two printed photos of him and his son sleeping, the unsub wrote "RULES" on Morgan's living room's walls, JJ received bloody roses, Rossi messages and threats and the same thing to Prentiss and finally Garcia got messages about you" the summary is very concise, the moment I describe things to Reid the flashbacks of what happened come to mind: the written on the wall, the photos, the messages, the now destroyed vase of roses and the threats.

"do you remember anything else? what happened after you left the apartment?" I try to change the topic, even though he seems more interested in what happened to us while he was in the warehouse.

"Yes, but I didn't leave the apartment, the unsub was inside my house. That day I decided to have breakfast at home, drinking a coffee, I rarely do, also because I never want to be late but that day I could. the coffee machine had problems, it smelled terrible, and I don't know how to use it well. The fact is that I drank that coffee and after a minute I found myself on the ground. Then nothing." he says.

"I don't know how long it took me to realize that I was sick but when I woke up I was in a truck, it was all dark, I could only see a little light coming from the driver's seat but I didn't see his face, at his own risk he removed the interior mirror.
then he always wore a strange mask, it was scary, he looked human. he injected me with so many things that I don't know what they were, he also put something in my eyes so I couldn't see anymore. For a moment I thought it was a woman, I think I figured it out from the footprints, but there's always something to consider." I nod to every sentence he says, I listen to him but I don't want some memories to be interrupted by the drugs he injected into them.

"Is there anything particular you saw as he led you to the warehouse? some tool in there, some symbol, maybe he's part of a group or was part of a group of hackers and stalkers something like that" I ask

"mmhh yes, on the door at the back of the warehouse, where he then escaped, there was a number written, in red but it looked like it had been written with a marker. I saw him write the number then he blinded me. The number was 512125 I think, then try to check the warehouse again, and if it's a marker or blood." he says.

"or a lipstick. you said that for a moment you thought it was a woman, what changed your mind?" I ask.

"as I have already told you for the steps, then before tying me to the chair he made me sit down putting a hand on my shoulder, a man would have thrown me into a corner and killed me, unless he or she knows us." he says.

"you are right Reid, now I warn the team about this, you need to rest so stay here. we'll take care of everything, I'll call you" I don't even give him time to say goodbye as I run to the elevator down the hall and dash out of the hospital.

I call Hotch and say call the team in the conference room even though it's 6:30, I think I have an idea who the unsub might be.