From the Shadows

Chapter Six

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"Things could be fine, if I could pull your strings, making you aware, I am here beside you, even when I'm not there, if I can feel you, I know you are mine." Esoterica- 'You are Mine'.

Something felt off. JJ could feel it in her bones from the moment she opened her eyes. She stared around at the bustling bullpen. Spencer was usually in before everyone else, but his desk was devoid of any presence. He would normally be hunched over a file, his hair resting against the papers scattered over his desk. There were no papers, no photos. No Spencer. JJ furrowed her brow. She glanced up at the digital clock on the wall. The illuminated digits told her it was 08.55am. Narrowing her blue eyes, JJ peered through Emily's office window. There was no sign of the genius there. She glanced over to the kitchenette but he wasn't there either. Concern welled in the pit of her stomach. Something's wrong... Where's Spencer? JJ picked her way to her desk and carefully placed her handbag under her desk. There was no sign that Spencer had even been there. JJ made her way up the few steps, past Emily's and David's offices towards the conference room. She grasped the cold door handle and slowly opened the door. There was no one in sight. The folders he had swept off the shelf remained scattered across the floor. JJ crossed her left arm over her chest, the right elbow resting against it. Her fingers danced over her bottom lip in thought.

"I'm just afraid that they'll get to me first." JJ's eyes widened with realisation. She tugged her cell phone out of her pocket and dialled Spencer's number, "Hello, this is Dr Spencer Reid. I'm afraid I can't take your call at the moment but please leave a message and I will get back to you as soon as I can." Spencer's phone never went to voicemail. He was available at any time of the day or night.

"Shit," muttered JJ, stuffing her phone back into her jeans pocket. She turned on a dime and returned to the bullpen, ignoring the mess from the previous day.

JJ spotted Emily making herself some coffee in the kitchenette. She dashed towards the unit chief, ignoring the stares from the other agents. Emily raised her eyebrows at the sight of the distraught blonde in front of her. She brought her mug to her lips and took a sip of her steaming beverage.

"Jayje? You okay?" asked Emily.

"Yes. No. It's Spence. Did he come and see you yesterday?"

"Yeah. He showed me some photos and letters from someone he thinks is stalking him. Why?"

"He's really scared, Em. I saw that fear yesterday. It's why he's not sleeping. He's scared of being alone in his apartment. He trashed the round table room and broke down. There's something he said to me when I tried to reassure him; he said "I'm just afraid that they'll get to me first." That's not Spence. He's not shown up for work and he's not answering his phone." Emily stilled in alarm. She hadn't even noticed their resident genius' absence. Guilt washed over her. The last time she hadn't took Spencer seriously, his mother had been kidnapped and she believed he was being paranoid.

Spencer visibly grew more agitated by the moment, his eyes wide and wild. His hands were clenched into fists. He had seen Lindsey Vaughn and he knew it, but he just couldn't seem to get the information through to Emily or Fiona Duncan, his attorney.

"Do you honestly not remember any of this?" he asked, his voice cracking with desperation.

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry, I forgot. But, Reid, how could she possibly-"

"I don't know! That's why I'm telling you this. I don't know, but I know what I saw!" Spencer slammed his fist onto the table, startling the two women, "You're not even listening to me! I know what I saw, all right?! Now, find Lindsey! Find Lindsey, please!" A pair of arms wrapped around Spencer's upper arms, dragging him away. The last thing Emily saw was the look of desperation in his eyes.

Then it clicked in her brain. He held that same desperate look in his eyes only twenty-four hours prior, the silent tears on his face. Emily knew then that she had been wrong, very wrong, to dismiss him so easily. Emily attempted to hardened her terrified features.

"Let's go check out his apartment. The rest of the team can continue with the case."

JJ was the first up the stairs to Spencer's apartment. She had cradled the cold steel key for his door in her hand but was horrified to find that she wouldn't need it. The door hung open slightly, the door frame splintered. Slowly, JJ drew her glock from her hip and raised it in front of her. Emily followed suit, her dark eyes scanning their surroundings. JJ stilled at the sight in front of her. A shattered vase lay on the ground in the hallway next to several splatters of blood. Spencer's revolver lay on the floor near one of his many bookcases. Emily crept towards the bedroom, her gun grasped in both hands. JJ looked around. His bag and blazer lay next to the coat stand. And that's when she saw them... Several photographs of an unconscious Spencer with his hands cuffed behind his back lying face down on the floor, blood trickling down the back of his neck, was pinned to the back of the front door. Blood was smeared across the photographs in the shape of a heart. JJ's blood ran cold. She turned to the sound of shuffling. Emily was holstering her gun as she approached. She swallowed thickly in horror at the blood and photographs.

"His stalker found him..." pressed out JJ, tears threatening her lower lashes.

Slender fingers unbuttoned the top of Spencer's shirt. An icy cold hand slid under the black fabric and caressed his collarbone. Spencer twitched, his body trembling from the unwanted touch, unable to let out more than mumbles and grunts. He tried to jerk away from the hand but his bonds prevented him from moving anywhere. He could hear his captor behind him, her fingers dancing over his nipple.

"Mmph!" he grunted, trying again to remove the hand. The woman's other hand cupped his jaw from behind and pulled his head back. Spencer breathed heavily through his nose. He felt the woman's cool exhale against his neck as she leaned in, biting hard into his flesh. Spencer let out a muffled shriek at the sharp pain that shot through his neck and up his earlobe. She had bitten his great auricular nerve. A bizarre tingling sensation and then numbness followed the pain. Spencer squirmed in the chair, desperately trying to escape the mad woman that was holding him prisoner.

"Mmmph."

"Shh, Spencer. I'm going to enjoy this and you can't try and talk me out of it. This-" The woman stroked the tape silencing Spencer, "the gag was a great idea." Spencer stilled as the woman licked his numb earlobe. She fanned her fingers out over the front of his slender neck. Spencer's Adam's apple bobbed underneath her cold touch. Usually, Spencer would have been profiling his captor with lightning speed but all he was able to focus on was the fear at what this woman was about to do. A pang of recognition resounded within his brain, though he struggled to piece together how he knew her. A weight dropped into his lap. He bucked his hips to try and dislodge the woman. She slapped him hard across the face. His cheek stung and reddened from the hit.

"Behave, Spencer. You wouldn't want me to punish you, would you?" Spencer grunted and tried again. The woman reached around behind the chair, her breasts pressing against his chest, and gripped the middle finger on his left hand. With a tug, Spencer felt the bone snap. A muffled scream ripped through his throat.

"Now... Where was I?" The woman returned to kissing Spencer's neck and chest as he panted through the tape covering his mouth in an effort to breathe his way through the pain.