#quantico

Spencer's hands are careful as he fastens your bulletproof vest over your chest, his brows furrowed. The fluorescent lights of the bullpen wash him pale, catching the faint shadows under his eyes from too many nights spent buried in files.

“You tightened it too much,” you mumble, wincing as he tugs the straps.

“It’s supposed to be tight,” he says automatically, not looking up.

“Pretty sure breathing is also supposed to happen.” That finally earns you a glance. Not amused. Just worried.

“You joke when you’re nervous.”

“And you lecture when you are.”

“I’m serious.”

“So am I. My lungs would like to file a formal complaint.” His mouth twitches despite himself, but it disappears almost immediately. Spencer smooths his hand over the front of the vest one last time, checking for gaps like he doesn’t trust the fabric to do its job properly. You study him for a second.

“You know,” you say quietly, “most people just say ‘be careful.’”

“I did say that.”

“Three times.”

“Because you ignored me the first two.” A snort escapes you, but it fades when you notice the way his fingers linger near your ribs. Restless. Anxious.The case had gotten ugly fast.Three victims in four days. All connected to the Bureau in some way. Retired agents. Informants. One federal prosecutor. And now the unsub had escalated from taunting the BAU to targeting your father directly. Aaron Hotchner had made enemies before. Plenty of them. But this one felt different.

Personal.

The unsub had been sending photographs for weeks now. Grainy shots of Hotch entering Quantico. Jack at soccer practice. You grabbing coffee outside the bullpen with Spencer. Watching. Waiting. The latest message had arrived that morning.

Tick tock, Hotchner.

And underneath it:

What hurts worse? Losing your team… or your daughter?

Hotch had gone frighteningly still when Garcia read it aloud. You’d watched the muscle in his jaw tick once before he started assigning teams like the world wasn’t tilting beneath his feet. Now the bullpen buzzes around you—agents moving quickly, radios crackling, Emily and JJ arguing quietly over routes—but Spencer still hasn’t stepped back.

“Spence,” you say softly. His eyes flick to yours immediately. “I’ll be okay.” The problem is he doesn’t answer. Because Spencer Reid has seen too many people promise that before bleeding out anyway. Behind you, your father emerges from his office already shrugging into his jacket.

“We hit the road in two,” Hotch says. The entire room shifts instantly into motion. Spencer finally lets go of your vest, though reluctantly, like peeling his hands away from something important.

“You stay with Luke,” he says firmly. “Don’t split up. Don’t go anywhere alone." You blink at him.

“Wow. You and my dad should start a podcast.”

“I’m serious.”

“You’re always serious.”

“That’s statistically inaccurate.” That almost gets a real smile out of you.Almost. Then Hotch’s voice cuts through the bullpen again.

“Let’s move.” You reach up and pull Spencer down towards you, catching his lips in a quick kiss as your dad, Luke, Walker and Emily all walk towards the black SUV's waiting for you downstairs.

The kiss barely lasts two seconds.

Still, Spencer chases it for half a heartbeat when you pull away, his hand catching briefly at your wrist like he’s fighting the urge to keep you there.

“Be careful,” he says quietly. You soften a little at the look on his face.

“Spence, we’re literally just surveilling a warehouse.”

“That statement significantly increases the statistical likelihood something catastrophic is about to happen.” Luke snorts from beside the elevators.

“He’s got a point.” You roll your eyes, backing toward the bullpen doors.

“You’re all dramatic.” Hotch appears behind you, expression unreadable but tired in the way only your father can manage.

“Move.”And just like that, the moment’s over. Everyone scatters into motion.

The unsub’s name is Daniel Kessler.

Former paramedic. Former military. Smart enough to stay ahead of the BAU for six weeks and angry enough to make mistakes.

More specifically: angry at Aaron Hotchner.

Three years ago, Hotch testified in a corruption case involving Kessler’s brother. The brother went to prison. Died there eleven months later.

Kessler blamed Hotch.

And now bodies were piling up across Virginia with surgical precision and handwritten messages left behind at each scene.

The latest lead had come fast—a possible location tied to one of Kessler’s shell companies just outside Quantico. Which was why the team was mobilizing so quickly. Three SUVs. Hotch and Rossi in the first. JJ and Tara in the second. You, Luke, Emily, and Walker in the third. Spencer stayed behind with Garcia to monitor incoming intel. He looked miserable about it.

At first, the drive is almost painfully normal. Walker’s driving. Emily sits shotgun flipping through case notes while Luke scrolls through updates on his phone beside you in the backseat. Rain taps softly against the windows. The highway stretches dark and endless ahead of you. Your phone buzzes.

SPENCE You forgot your scarf.

You smile despite yourself.

YOU Tragic. I’ll hold a funeral later.

Three dots appear immediately.

Then:

SPENCE Funny people are statistically more likely to survive traumatic situations.

You bark out a laugh. Luke glances over.

“Pretty Boy?”

“Unfortunately.” Emily sighs dramatically from the front seat.

“You two are disgusting.”

“You say that like you haven’t watched them stare at each other for ten straight minutes in briefing rooms,” Walker says.

“I have,” Emily replies. “That’s why I said it. I've also watched them pine for each other for years. This sudden shift in dynamics is weird. I honestly liked it better when Reid was all stuttery and shy around her."

"We didn't pine." You grumble, shifting in your seat. Four separate looks immediately get directed at you. Luke actually lowers his phone.

“Be serious.”

“He wrote you a six-page apology because he accidentally snapped at you once,” Emily says to absolutely no one’s surprise.

Walker snorts from the driver’s seat.

“Reid used to look like he was being held hostage every time she touched him.”

“He still does sometimes,” Luke says.

“Okay, wow,” you mutter. Emily twists slightly in her seat to look back at you.

“Sweetheart, he once walked into the glass conference room wall because you smiled at him.”

“That happened one time.”

“Twice,” Luke corrects. Walker laughs.

“Nah, my favorite was the coffee thing.” You narrow your eyes.

“What coffee thing?”

“You brought him coffee every morning for like eight months,” Walker says.

“Because he forgets to eat when he’s working.”

“And Reid started memorizing your coffee order after day two,” Emily adds smugly. Luke points between all of you.

“See, this is why none of us were shocked when they finally got together.”

“You were all shocked,” you argue.

“We were shocked it took this long,” Emily corrects. Emily cackles. “You're dating a textbook.”

“A very pretty textbook,” you mumble before thinking better of it. Unfortunately the entire car hears you. Walker makes a wounded sound.

“Oh, that’s disgusting.” Emily clutches her chest dramatically.

“No, let her continue. This is healing me.” You flip her off from the backseat. Rain continues tapping softly against the windshield as the SUV speeds down the dark stretch of highway. The radio crackles quietly every few seconds with updates from the other cars. Somewhere ahead, Hotch and Rossi are already discussing entry routes. JJ’s voice cuts in briefly over comms before fading back out. For a moment, everything feels strangely normal.

Easy.

Luke elbows you lightly.

“You know Reid almost called Hotch Sr when he asked permission to ask you out.” Your head whips toward him.

“What?” Emily bursts into delighted laughter.

“He did.” Walker nearly misses the curve in the road because he’s laughing too hard now.

“No he did not.”

“Oh, he absolutely did,” Emily says. “Hotch just stared at him for like ten full seconds while Reid visibly aged.” Luke deepens his voice badly in imitation. “‘Agent Hotchner, respectfully, I was wondering if—’”

“Stop talking,” you groan.

“—if your daughter would potentially—’”

“You’re all dead to me.” Emily wipes tears from under her eyes.

“Your father looked so uncomfortable.” Walker grins into the rearview mirror.

“Honestly brave of Reid. I’d rather fistfight a bear than ask Hotch for dating permission.”

“He didn’t ask permission,” you defend automatically. Luke raises an eyebrow.

“He absolutely did.” Luke laughs. And for one perfect, stupid second, everything feels fine.

Then you see it. Up ahead. Small. Sharp. Metal glinting beneath the headlights. Your stomach drops instantly.

“Walker—” Too late. The SUV hits the spike strips hard. The sound is explosive. All four tires blow at once.

"Shit !" Walker jerks the wheel violently as the vehicle fishtails across the slick highway. Emily shouts something.

"Everybody hold on !" Luke grabs for the handle above the door. Your seatbelt locks brutally across your chest as the world spins sideways.

Then— Headlights. Blinding. A truck horn screaming— And impact. Metal shrieks. Glass detonates. Your body whips sideways so hard your vision whites out completely. Something slams into your ribs.

When you wake up, you can’t breathe. Pain hits first. Not sharp. Everywhere. Burning agony flooding through every inch of your body like someone poured gasoline into your veins. A broken sound leaves your throat. Smoke curls through the crushed SUV. Your head lolls sideways. Everything looks wrong. The windshield is gone. The dashboard is crumpled inward. Blood streaks the windows. Your seatbelt digs painfully into your chest. For a second you can’t understand why your left arm won’t move properly. Then feeling rushes back all at once and you nearly black out again.

“Fuck—” Your voice comes out shredded. You force your head up. Emily’s slumped against the passenger door, unmoving, blood running down the side of her face. Luke’s crumpled awkwardly beside you.

Walker— Walker’s head hangs at an angle that makes your stomach twist violently. Too still. Far too still.

“Walker,” you croak. No response. You try again, panic climbing your throat. You reach forward, wincing at the pull of your seat belt, shaking him. “Walker!” His entire body slumps forward, head landing on the steering wheel with a deafening thud. You bite back the bile threatening to spew out of you, your vision tunneling as you jerk back. Your chest caves inward.

Oh God. Smoke thickens around you. The car groans. Somewhere outside, people are shouting. You fumble clumsily for the seatbelt release with trembling fingers. It finally clicks. The second it unlatches, your body pitches forward violently and agony tears through your side hard enough to make you scream. Something’s wrong. Something is very, very wrong. You look down. Blood. So much blood. A jagged piece of metal protrudes from beneath your ribs. Your vision flickers.

“No no no—” The driver-side door suddenly jerks open. Cold rain floods in. A man appears beside the wreckage wearing EMT gear. Reflective jacket. Medical gloves. Calm eyes. Relief crashes through you so hard you almost cry.

“Ma'am,” he says firmly. “Stay still.” You nod weakly.

“My-My friends - Please you have to-” Your eyes dart around, trying to catch a glimpse of the other cars. You can see smoke and fire from somewhere behind you, and panic claws up your throat. "Oh, god- my-my dad is in- please, you have to-"

“We’ll get them,” he says quickly. “I need to move you first.” Your brain feels slow. Foggy. He cuts through your vest with terrifying efficiency. Strong hands slide beneath your arms. Pain explodes through your abdomen as he pulls you free from the wreckage. You scream.

“I know,” he says soothingly. “I know. I got you.” Rain pours down around you. Lights flash red and blue across the highway. Your head lolls weakly against his shoulder as he carries you toward the ambulance. You can barely keep your eyes open. Your body feels heavy.

Wrong.

“Dad,” you mumble. “Need my dad—”

“We already got the two other cars evacuated. We have extra RA's en route to escort your friends to the hospital. Your father is waiting for you there.” the EMT says. You nod, rain soaking your clothes. He loads you onto the stretcher. The ambulance doors stand open behind you.

Then— Movement. Across the wreckage. Another SUV. Crushed against the guardrail. And stumbling out of it— Hotch.

Your father can barely stand. Blood runs down the side of his face. One arm hangs limp. But the second his eyes land on you— Pure horror floods his expression.

“Sweetheart !” Your breath catches.

What ?

Your breath catches. The EMT had said Hotch was already at the hospital. Your stomach drops so violently it almost makes you vomit.

No.

No, no—

Hotch stumbles forward through the rain, slipping against the soaked pavement as he tries to run toward the ambulance. Rossi is behind him shouting for medics, for backup, for somebody to stop the vehicle, but your father’s eyes are locked entirely on you. On the man beside you. And suddenly you understand. The EMT’s hand tightens on the stretcher rail.

“Wait,” you whisper. Hotch sees your expression change.

“No!” he roars. The ambulance doors slam shut. The sound nearly knocks the air out of your lungs. Panic detonates through your body. You jerk upright instantly despite the agony ripping through your abdomen.

“Stop the fucking ambulance!” you scream, scrambling backward across the stretcher. Pain tears through your ribs so hard your vision whites out, but adrenaline keeps you moving. “Stop—” The EMT grabs for you. You swing first. Your fist cracks against his jaw hard enough to snap his head sideways. For one glorious second, he actually looks surprised.

“Bitch,” he mutters. You lunge for the door handles. Your blood-slick fingers almost catch them before he hauls you backward violently. Agony explodes through your side and a scream rips out of your throat. Outside the tiny rear windows, you can still see your father. Hotch is running after the ambulance. Actually running. Broken. Bleeding. Desperate.

“Dad!” you sob, slamming your palm against the doors. “Dad!” The ambulance swerves sharply.

The EMT hooks an arm around your waist and drags you back against him with brutal force. You fight instantly, elbows flying despite the pain.

“Get the fuck off me!” you choke out.

“Jesus Christ,” the man snarls, struggling to keep hold of you. “You really are his kid.” Something cold presses suddenly against your neck. A syringe. Your blood runs cold.

“No—” The needle plunges into your skin. You gasp sharply and shove at him harder, but your limbs already feel wrong. Heavy. Slow. “No no no—” The man restrains you easily now, forcing you back onto the stretcher as the sedative floods your bloodstream. Your vision starts swimming almost immediately. Outside, through the blurred back windows, you see Hotch reach the ambulance for half a second— His hand slams against the rear doors as he screams your name.

“No !” The sound breaks something inside you. Then the ambulance surges forward. And your father disappears into rain and flashing lights. Your body stops cooperating.

Your arms feel numb.

Your heartbeat echoes strangely in your ears.

The EMT pulls off his mask calmly while you struggle weakly beneath him.

Not an EMT.

Kessler.

You recognize him now. The eyes. Cold. Empty. Patient.

“You should’ve stayed still,” he says, almost disappointed. Your mouth won’t work properly anymore.

“You…” you slur weakly. Kessler sighs, pushing you flat against the stretcher as your body goes limp beneath his hands.

“Relax,” he murmurs. “You’re bleeding internally. This is keeping you alive.” You try to fight him again anyway. Your hand barely lifts. Kessler watches you with detached fascination.

"Let's see if Aaron Hotchner's precious daughter is more important than putting me behind bars." He grabs another needle and grabs you arm.

You try to fight back- God, you try.

But your body feels like it's been filled with concrete, like your veins are hardening with every passing second, weighing you down.

Kessler grins.

"Sweet dreams."

-----------------

"Aaron- Aaron, listen to me-" Rossi is waving his arms in front of Hotch as real sirens flood the space. Emily crawls out of the car, coughing and bleeding from her temple, her hand pressed to her side as she limps her way over to Luke's side of the car and tugs him out. JJ stumbles from another wreckage, waving her hand in front of her face as she coughs, a large gash running down the side of her arm. Tara doesn't look badly hurt, just concussed as she stumbles down the stretch of highway, her hand pressed to her head in confusion as Derek helps her forward.

And Aaron Hotchner can't fucking breathe.

"N-No, we- we have to go after her." He rasps, shaking his head. "The ambulance didn't have a license plate but-but it was him. It was him, Dave." Rossi grabs Hotch hard by the shoulders.

“Aaron!” Hotch’s chest heaves violently. Rain pours down his face, mixing with blood from the cut at his hairline. His eyes are locked on the empty stretch of highway where the ambulance disappeared into the storm.

“The ambulance didn’t have plates,” he says again, voice shredded raw. “It was him. Dave, it was fucking him.” Behind them, chaos erupts across the crash site. Actual EMTs flood the highway now, shouting over each other as they move between the wrecked SUVs. Red and blue lights flash violently across twisted metal and shattered glass. Somebody yells for extraction tools. Another medic shouts about fuel leakage. Walker’s body is finally pulled from the front seat. Emily sees the tarp being unfolded and stops dead.

“No,” she whispers. Luke catches her arm before she can stumble forward. JJ presses a trembling hand over her mouth, blood still running down her forearm. Tara stands dazed beside Derek, one hand against her temple as she tries to process the devastation around her. For one horrible moment, nobody speaks. Then the highway explodes back into noise.

“Aaron,” Rossi says again, more firmly this time. “Talk to me.” Hotch looks like he can barely breathe.

“She saw me,” he rasps. “She looked right at me.” His voice breaks on the last word. Dave’s stomach twists. Because Aaron Hotchner does not break. Not like this. “She realized it wasn’t real,” Hotch says, staring blankly down the road. “She started fighting him.” Emily looks up sharply.

“What?” Hotch drags a hand over his bloodied face.

“He was dressed like an EMT.” His breathing turns uneven. “I thought she was being transported until I saw—” He cuts himself off hard. Too late. Rossi catches it immediately.

“What did you see?” Aaron closes his eyes for one second too long. When he opens them again, there’s something almost haunted sitting behind them.

“She was hurt.” The team goes still.

“How bad?” JJ asks quietly. Hotch swallows.

“I don’t know.” Lie. Everybody hears it. Aaron’s jaw tightens violently. “There was blood,” he says carefully, like each word physically hurts. “A lot of blood.” Emily’s face drains of color. Luke curses under his breath.

“She couldn’t move properly,” Hotch continues hollowly. “He had to carry her." Nobody says anything after that. Because they all know what that means. Then headlights tear onto the highway. A black SUV brakes hard across the shoulder. Spencer is out of the vehicle before it fully stops moving. Garcia barely gets the car in park before he’s sprinting after him.

“Hotch!” Spencer shouts, panic already threading through his voice as he takes in the wreckage. “What happened?” Garcia steps out behind him—and freezes completely.

“Oh my God.” The highway looks apocalyptic. Smoke. Rain. Crushed SUVs. Flashing lights reflecting off blood-slick pavement. Spencer eyes scan frantically across the scene.

JJ.

Emily.

Luke.

Tara.

Derek.

Rossi.

Hotch.

His stomach drops. Because you’re not there. Spencer’s breathing changes instantly.

“Where is she?” Nobody answers quickly enough. And terror detonates behind his ribs. “Where is she?” Emily looks away. Garcia starts crying immediately. Spencer stares at them.

“No.” Luke steps forward carefully.

“Reid—”

“No.” The word cracks out of him violently. “What happened?” Hotch finally steps toward him, rain dripping from his ruined suit.

“Kessler staged the crash,” he says hoarsely. “He took her.” Spencer just stares at him. Like the sentence physically does not make sense.

“Took her?” he repeats faintly.

“The ambulance was fake,” Rossi says grimly. “He disguised himself as an EMT.” Garcia lets out a broken sob behind them. Spencer’s face goes completely white.

“When?” he asks.

“Less than four minutes ago,” Luke says. “Local units are already searching—” Spencer looks immediately at Hotch. Not Rossi. Not Emily. Hotch. Because Hotch saw her last. And Aaron realizes Spencer already knows that too. Their eye contact lasts half a second. It’s enough. Spencer’s expression changes instantly.

“How bad was she hurt?” Hotch doesn’t answer quickly enough. Spencer takes a step forward. “How bad?” Aaron looks wrecked. Actually wrecked.

“She was conscious,” he says carefully.

“That’s not what I asked.”

“Aaron,” Rossi warns quietly. But Spencer doesn’t look away from Hotch. Hotch exhales shakily through his nose.

“There was blood.” Spencer’s breathing stutters.

“How much?”

“I don’t know.” Another lie. Spencer hears that one too. And suddenly he looks furious. Terrified, grieving, furious. “She couldn’t move on her own,” Hotch admits quietly. “He carried her into the ambulance.” Garcia breaks down harder behind them and Derek crosses the space immediately to grab onto her. Spencer physically sways where he stands. For a second it looks like he might actually collapse. Then his face hardens into something sharp enough to cut glass.

“What direction?” Hotch blinks.

“Reid—”

“What direction did he go?”

“Eastbound,” Hotch answers carefully. Spencer immediately turns toward Garcia’s SUV. Hotch grabs his arm before he gets two steps. “You are not going alone.” Spencer jerks free instantly. His eyes are glassy with panic now.

“You let her get in that ambulance.” The words hit like a gunshot. Silence crashes down around the wreckage. Spencer looks horrified the second he says it. Because he knows exactly who he just said it to. A father who watched his daughter get kidnapped while injured and bleeding. Hotch recoils anyway. Not angry. Just devastated.

“I know,” he says quietly. That destroys Spencer more effectively than shouting ever could. His face crumples. Rain pours around all of you in endless sheets as sirens scream across the highway.

And somewhere out there— You’re alone with Kessler.

--------

When you come to, the first thing you feel is that the pain at your abdomen has lessened.

It’s still there.

Deep. Burning. Wrong.

But dulled somehow, like your body’s been wrapped in cotton. Your eyelids feel impossibly heavy as you force them open. Darkness swims above you for a second before dim industrial lights sharpen into focus overhead. Concrete ceiling. Rusted pipes. Water dripping somewhere nearby in slow, echoing intervals. Your wrists jerk instinctively.

Metal rattles. Cold panic slams into you. You're strapped upright to some kind of steel chair bolted into the floor. Thick restraints pin your wrists and chest in place. Your injured side throbs violently when you struggle, making black spots burst across your vision.

“Easy. I bandaged you up but you're still actively bleeding out.” The voice comes from somewhere ahead of you. Kessler steps into view calmly, sleeves rolled to his elbows like he’s in the middle of an ordinary workday instead of holding an FBI agent hostage. Your breathing quickens immediately.

“Fuck you,” you rasp. He actually smiles faintly.

“That’s usually the morphine talking." Morphine. That explains the floating feeling in your limbs. You look down quickly. Your vest is gone. Soaked bandages are wrapped tightly around your abdomen beneath a gray thermal shirt that definitely isn’t yours. There’s dried blood everywhere. Along your arms. Beneath your fingernails. Across the floor near the chair. Your stomach twists hard.

“How long—”

“Thirty-six minutes since the crash,” Kessler answers smoothly. Ice floods your bloodstream. The team. Your dad.

“Where are they?” you demand. Kessler ignores the question entirely. Instead, he walks toward a camera mounted on a tripod across the room. And your blood runs cold all over again. “No.” Kessler adjusts the lens casually. “No no no—”

“You know,” he says conversationally, “your father’s reputation in the Bureau is fascinating. Aaron Hotchner. Untouchable. Unshakeable. Men like him always think they understand sacrifice until it becomes personal.” Your restraints clatter violently as you fight them.

“You’re insane.”

“Probably.” He doesn’t even blink. Then he reaches beside the camera and wheels something large into frame. A timer. Digital.

Bright red numbers glaring through the darkness.

00:59:48

Your stomach drops.

“What is that?” Your voice cracks. Kessler finally looks at you directly.

“The amount of time your team has left.” He grabs your arm, sighing as he squeezes and IV bag and mounts it onto the stand beside you.

“Kessler—”

The dosage is regulated electronically.” He taps the pump beside the bag. “Small increments over time. Once the drip reaches completion…” He shrugs lightly. “Multi-organ failure. Cardiac arrest shortly after.”

Your mouth goes dry instantly.

“No.”

“The fascinating thing about poison,” he continues conversationally, “is how personal it feels. Bullets are loud. Explosions are chaotic. But poison?” He tilts his head. “Poison makes people wait.”

Your stomach twists hard enough to make you gag. You stare at him in horror. Then fury detonates through you.

“You’re a fucking coward.” Kessler hums softly.

“And yet your father still can’t catch me.” He presses a button. The camera light turns red.

LIVE.

—————————

The BAU bullpen is chaos. Medics move between injured agents while tech analysts flood every available screen searching traffic cams, road footage, satellite hits—anything. Nobody’s winning. Hotch stands in the center of it all like a ghost. Still covered in blood. Still soaking wet from the rain. Spencer sits at Garcia’s station beside her, fingers flying across the keyboard so fast they blur. His hands are shaking violently.

“Nothing,” Garcia whispers tearfully. “No ambulance hits, no hospital pings, no traffic cams—he scrubbed everything.” Emily presses gauze harder against the cut on her temple.

“He planned this for months.”

“No,” Spencer says instantly. Everyone looks at him. Spencer’s eyes stay locked on the screen. “Longer.” Before anyone can respond— Every monitor in the bullpen flickers. Static crackles. Garcia startles violently., fingers flying over her keyboard, trying to figure out how this is happening. Then your face appears onscreen.

Bruised. Bloodied. Restrained.

The room stops breathing.

“No,” Hotch says faintly. Your head lifts weakly toward the camera, disoriented and terrified and alive. Spencer goes white beside Garcia.

“No…” The digital timer flashes beside you.

00:58:03

“What the hell is that?” Luke breathes. Then Kessler steps into frame. And the entire room explodes into motion.

“Trace it now!” Emily shouts. Garcia is already typing frantically.

“I’m trying!” Kessler looks directly into the camera.

“Good evening, Behavioral Analysis Unit.” Kessler smiles like he’s hosting a lecture instead of a hostage broadcast. Garcia’s hands fly across the keyboard.

“I can’t get a lock—he’s bouncing the signal through multiple servers—oh my God, oh my God—”

“Penelope,” Emily snaps, though her own voice shakes. “Focus.”

“I am focused!” Onscreen, Kessler slowly circles your chair. The camera quality is grainy but clear enough to show the blood staining the bandages around your abdomen. Clear enough to show the IV line running into your arm. And the transparent liquid steadily dripping through the tube. Spencer goes completely still beside Garcia.

Not calm.

Worse.

The kind of stillness that means he’s trying very hard not to completely lose his mind. Your head hangs weakly forward before lifting slightly at the sound of Kessler speaking. Your eyes look unfocused. Drugged. Terrified. The bullpen falls silent. Even the analysts nearby stop moving. Because this isn’t just being streamed to the BAU.

This is public.

News stations are already picking it up. Social media feeds explode in real time across nearby monitors. Millions of people watching an FBI agent tied to a chair with a countdown beside her.

“Aaron Hotchner,” Kessler says smoothly, looking directly into the camera. “You know, I expected someone taller.” Hotch doesn’t react outwardly. But Rossi sees his fist tighten. Sees the blood dripping from where Aaron’s fingernails cut into his own palm.

“You built your career profiling monsters,” Kessler continues. “You taught agents how to think like predators. How to anticipate violence.” He tilts his head slightly toward you. “But you never considered what happens when someone decides to study you instead.” Your breathing trembles onscreen.

“Kessler—” you rasp weakly.

“Shh.” He adjusts the IV line almost tenderly. “You don’t need to talk right now.” Spencer physically flinches. Luke swears violently under his breath.

“The poison entering Agent Hotchner’s daughter’s bloodstream,” Kessler says calmly, “is administered incrementally through an automated pump system. By the time the timer reaches zero…” He smiles faintly. “Well. I imagine your Dr. Reid can explain organ failure better than I can.” All eyes snap toward Spencer automatically. Spencer’s face has gone corpse pale. But his voice still works. Barely.

“It depends on the toxin,” he says mechanically, eyes glued to the screen. “If it’s ricin-based or synthetic colchicine compounds, systemic collapse would begin gradually. Respiratory distress first. Then cardiovascular instability. Seizures. Multi-organ failure—”

“Spencer,” JJ says softly. He cuts himself off instantly. Onscreen, your eyes flutter shut for a second too long.

“Hey,” Kessler says sharply, gripping your jaw hard enough to force your head back up. “Stay awake. It's not fun for our viewers if you die right now." You whimper, trying to inch away from him. He chuckles, low and mean. A broken sound leaves your throat as your body jerks weakly against the restraints. Spencer’s breathing changes instantly.

“What just happened?” Emily demands. Spencer stares at the screen.

“The poison’s already active,” he says quietly. Garcia looks horrified.

“But there’s still fifty-seven minutes left—”

“The timer isn’t for symptom onset.” Spencer swallows hard. “It’s for fatal dosage completion.” Nobody speaks. Onscreen, Kessler steps back toward the camera.

“You have one hour,” he says conversationally. “Find me before the drip finishes…” He shrugs. “And maybe she lives. But I should warn you,” he continues. “Removing the IV incorrectly triggers the failsafe.” He taps the side of the electronic pump. “And if the line stops prematurely…” Another small shrug. “The dosage accelerates.” Garcia lets out a strangled noise.

“That’s impossible,” Luke snaps.

“No,” Spencer says faintly. Everyone looks at him again. Spencer’s eyes stay locked on the screen. “It’s not.” Hotch spins around, his chest heaving.

"Garcia, get me a list of Kessler's known adressesses, a list of his spending info- maybe he rented out a place- i want everything you have on him, now !"

Garcia is already moving before Hotch finishes the sentence.

“I’m on it, I’m on it - okay- okay - ” Her voice is high and strained, fingers slamming across the keyboard like she’s trying to outrun panic itself. Multiple windows open and collapse across her monitors. “Known addresses are mostly burned, he went dark after his brother's death but - there’s financial ghosting here, offshore shells, prepaid infrastructure - he’s not staying anywhere with a paper trail -he’s not staying anywhere period -”

“Focus,” Rossi says sharply, but even he sounds strained now. Emily is already leaning over her shoulder.

“What about municipal access points? Abandoned government facilities?” Luke shakes his head.

“We’re checking transit grids already. He’s not static - he’s moving through infrastructure, not occupying it.” Spencer doesn’t blink.

His eyes are locked on the screen. On you.

00:53:18.

Your head droops again, just slightly, and Spencer’s breath catches so hard it sounds like it hurts.

“Hey,” JJ says quietly, noticing him. “Reid, stay with us.” But he doesn’t answer. Because his brain is already somewhere else. Already rebuilding everything Kessler just showed them.

The IV pump. The feed latency. The lack of metadata. The stabilization pattern. Spencer swallows hard.

“He’s not in a building,” he says suddenly. Garcia looks up.

“What?” Spencer’s voice tightens.

“The signal stability - there’s too little fluctuation for a fixed structure. No HVAC interference, no power grid variance, no reflective bounce patterns consistent with concrete reinforcement -” Emily frowns.

“Then where is he?” Spencer doesn’t look away from the screen.

“Mobile containment unit,” he says. “Or a retrofitted transport shell. Something insulated enough to mask environmental noise.” Luke curses under his breath.

“Like a van.” Spencer shakes his head once.

“Bigger.” Silence. Hotch turns slowly.

“Bus?” Rossi suggests grimly. Spencer finally looks at them.

“No,” he says. “Something that can support medical-grade equipment, power draw for a stabilized livestream, and internal temperature control without drawing attention.” Garcia’s hands freeze mid-type.

“Oh my God.” Emily’s voice drops.

“A mobile medical unit.” Rossi’s jaw tightens.

“Like disaster response.” Hotch’s eyes sharpen instantly.

“Ambulance.” Spencer nods once. But it doesn’t feel like relief. It feels worse. Because that still leaves too many possibilities. Too many jurisdictions. Too many vehicles. Too much ground to cover while the clock keeps bleeding out.

00:53:04.

Onscreen, Kessler steps back into frame briefly—just enough to adjust something near the IV stand. You flinch sharply. Harder this time. Hotch makes a sound low in his throat—barely audible, but it cuts through the room anyway. Spencer’s hands curl into fists at Garcia’s station.

“Garcia,” he says quickly, voice suddenly urgent. “Cross-reference registered medical transport units within a fifty-mile radius of the crash corridor. Anything that went off-route in the last hour.”

“I’m already - ” Her screen updates rapidly. “Got it, got it - Okay, there’s twelve possible matches - ”

“Twelve,” Luke repeats sharply.

“We don’t have time for twelve,” Emily snaps. Hotch steps forward again.

“Cut it to three,” he orders. “Now.” Garcia swallows hard.

“I can filter by signal - give me thirty seconds - ”

“Twenty,” Hotch says. Nobody argues. Because on the screen— You shift again. Barely conscious. Barely holding on. And Spencer Reid, who has spent his entire life turning chaos into patterns, suddenly looks like he’s staring directly into something he cannot solve fast enough.

Garcia’s screen updates again. Once. Twice. Then locks. Her breath catches so hard it hurts.

“I’ve got him,” she says. Nobody speaks. Hotch turns instantly.

“Where.” Garcia swallows.

“Abandoned agricultural zone outside Leesburg—old county service land. There’s a decommissioned livestock processing facility on the property. Signal’s cleanest there—he’s stationary.” Spencer is already there before she finishes the sentence.

“How far?” he asks immediately. Garcia glances at the route mapping.

“Forty-six minutes,” she says quietly. The number lands like a gunshot. Silence. Emily shakes her head once.

“We don’t have forty-six minutes.” Rossi is already moving toward the SUV.

“Then we don’t waste a second.” Hotch stares at the map like he can force the distance to shrink through sheer will. Spencer’s voice breaks through again, sharper now.

“How long—how long until completion?” Garcia’s fingers tremble over the timer feed.

“Fifty-three minutes,” she whispers.That finally shifts the math in the room. Because everyone understands it at the same time. Forty-six minutes to reach you.Fifty-three minutes until the drip completes.

Seven minutes.

That’s all they’ll have once they get there. Seven minutes to find you. Seven minutes to neutralize Kessler. Seven minutes to keep you alive. Hotch exhales once, slow and controlled—but his eyes are shattered.

“Let's move,” he says. The SUVs tear down the highway in formation, sirens splitting the night open. Inside Hotch’s vehicle, no one speaks anymore unless they have to. The countdown is on every screen.

Every phone. Every live feed Garcia refuses to close.

00:52:41.

Spencer stares at the map overlay like he can bend it into something faster. Luke grips the seat hard enough to go white-knuckled. Emily keeps her eyes forward, jaw tight, blood still drying at her temple. Rossi drives like a man refusing to accept physics as final. Hotch doesn’t move.

Doesn’t blink. Doesn’t look away from the road even once.

“Forty-six minutes,” Luke says quietly, almost to himself. Spencer’s voice is barely audible.

“That’s if nothing goes wrong.” Nobody responds to that. Because they all know what it means.

------------------

00:07:00.

Your body feels like lead.

Your veins are on fire.

Your mouth has gone dry, and you can barely breathe- every breath sounds like a rusty rattle of child's mobile. Your vision flickers in and out like a broken signal. Your body isn’t yours anymore. It’s heavy in the wrong places, light in others. Your fingers twitch weakly against the restraints, but there’s no strength left behind it.

The IV pump beeps steadily beside you. Too steady. Too calm. Like it doesn’t care that you’re dying.

You groan, trying hard to stay awake, to stay concsious.

They're coming for you. They have to be.

The room hums with fluorescent light and something worse underneath it—your heartbeat, irregular now, stumbling against the poison like it’s losing the argument. Kessler circles you slowly, hands behind his back like he’s inspecting something he built.

“Do you know what your father hates most?” he asks lightly. Your head lolls a fraction toward him. It takes effort just to keep your eyes open.

“People like you,” he continues. “Not weak. Not careless. Just… loved.” Your throat tightens. Spencer’s name tries to form in your mind and doesn’t quite make it. Kessler steps closer, studying your face like he’s waiting for something interesting to happen.

“You’re very difficult to break,” he says thoughtfully. “That’s what makes this worth watching.” The IV pump beeps again. Too steady. Too final.

Your fingers twitch weakly against the restraints. Kessler leans in just slightly.

“I wonder how long it takes,” he murmurs, almost curious. “For Aaron Hotchner to choose between duty and family.” Your stomach drops hard.

“Don’t,” you rasp, but it’s barely sound. He smiles faintly.

“Oh, he already has.” And then— The doors behind him explode inward. Not an opening. An impact.

Wood and metal snap as tactical force hits the room like a wave.

“FBI! DOWN!” The shout is immediate chaos. Hotch is first through, weapon up, eyes scanning—locking instantly on you like everything else in the room ceases to exist.

“Aaron!” Rossi calls, sweeping left. Emily and Luke split right. Derek comes in hard behind them, already moving. Kessler barely has time to turn before Hotch has him pinned against the nearest surface, gun pressed high, voice ice-cold.

“Don’t move.” Kessler actually laughs once. Spencer doesn’t even look at him. He’s already across the room. Everything else collapses into noise and motion behind him—Hotch securing Kessler, Rossi shouting commands, Emily cuffing him down—but Spencer doesn’t register any of it. He reaches you like gravity finally remembered him.

“Hey—hey, hey,” he breathes, hands shaking as they go to your face immediately. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.” Your eyelids flutter.

"Spence ?" He nods, hands working at your restraints atfer he softly tears the IV out of your arm.

"Yeah, yeah, it's me. I'm here, alright, i'm here." Your body falls forward, exhausted, the second those restraints stop holding you up, your body folding like it’s been waiting for permission to collapse. Spencer catches you before you hit the ground. Immediately. Completely.

“No - no, no, no - hey, hey, hey - stay with me,” he says, voice cracking violently as he pulls you into him. “Stay with me, okay? Stay with me-look at me.” Your head lolls against his chest. He’s on the floor now without even realizing it. One arm under your shoulders. One hand pressed hard against the bandages on your abdomen like he can physically stop what’s happening inside you. He looks up, his eyes frantic.

"Derek ! Derek !" He calls as Hotch and the others disappear outside, pushing a cuffed Kessler with them. Derek's head snaps over and his face drains of color.

"Holy shit." He gasps, his chest heaving. Spencer chokes on a sob, pushing your hair away from your face.

"We-We need an ambulance. She-She's losing blood, she-" He gasps in a breath, shaking his head. "He’s got to have—he’s not carrying something like this without a reversal agent.” Spencer doesn’t look away from you. “Shelves,” he says instantly, voice raw but focused only on survival. “Look—look everywhere. Cabinets. Lockboxes. He wouldn’t leave it unbalanced.” Derek moves immediately. The timer ticks down like a taunt.

00:04:53.

Derek rummages through shelves, cabinets, drawers, cursing under his breath as he throws things on the ground. You clutch weakly at Spencer's vest, your hands shaking.

"Spence.." He shushes you, pressing his lips to your forehead.

"Hey, hey, don't talk, okay ? You're going to be fine. Just fine, okay ?"

"I-I'm so cold." You manage, shivers coursing through your body. Spencer grimaces.

"I know, baby, i know." He looks up. "Derek, where the fuck is that antidote !" Derek rips open another metal cabinet so hard the hinge screams in protest.

“I’m looking, I’m looking!” he snaps back, breathless, scanning shelves packed with medical bags, vials, and sealed containers that absolutely should not be here. “This guy is insane—”

Spencer hears none of it anymore. All of it narrows down to you. To the way your fingers are trembling against his vest. To the shallow, uneven rise of your chest. To the way your skin feels wrong beneath his hands—too cold, too fast to lose heat.

“I’ve got you,” he repeats again, but it’s not steady anymore. It’s breaking apart at the edges. “I’ve got you, I’ve got you—just stay with me, okay? Just—just stay with me.” Your head tips slightly against him. And for a second, his entire body goes rigid.

“No,” he whispers immediately, like he can undo it with the word alone. “No, no—hey—look at me. Look at me.”

Your eyes barely open. Barely there. But they do. And it ruins him.

“Got something!” Derek suddenly shouts from the far side of the room. Spencer’s head snaps up so fast it hurts. Derek holds up a small locked case - medical-grade, reinforced, labeled in a way that makes Spencer’s stomach drop immediately. “Is this it?” Derek demands. Spencer doesn’t even hesitate.

“Yes. Yes, that’s it - bring it here, now!” Derek slams it down beside them and Spencer’s hands are shaking so badly he almost fumbles the latch. The lock clicks open.

Inside: syringes. A sealed ampoule. A vial clearly marked in clinical print- ANTIDOTE.

He’s already drawing it up.

“Where do I—”

“Her arm,” Spencer says instantly, tearing his own focus into something sharp and functional because if he doesn’t, he’s going to fall apart completely. “Right arm - no, no - left - there, there - ” Derek moves in, steady hands taking over what Spencer can’t control anymore.

“I’ve got it,” Derek says low. Spencer nods too quickly, not letting go of you for even a second. His other hand stays pressed to your shoulder like an anchor. “Okay,” Derek says. “Injecting now.” The syringe depresses. For half a second, nothing happens. Then your body jerks—just slightly. Spencer makes a sound that’s halfway between a gasp and a sob.

“Hey - hey, hey,” he says immediately, hand cupping your cheek. "You're gonna be okay." But you're still slipping somewhere he can’t follow fast enough. “I’ve got you,” he repeats again, but now it’s desperate. “I’ve got you, I’ve got you, I’ve got you - please - please don’t do this - ” Derek looks up sharply at the doorway, where JJ stands frozen.

"We need medical backup now!” JJ nods, rushing away.

Spencer sobs, then immediately chokes on it, pressing your hand tighter against his chest like he can force you to stay by sheer will alone. Footsteps thunder back in—Hotch, Rossi, Emily. Hotch sees you on the floor. And something in his face breaks cleanly. But Spencer can’t look at him. Can’t look at anyone. Because you’re right there in his arms and still not safe.

“Hey,” he whispers, voice collapsing completely now, tears spilling down without permission as he holds you closer. “Hey, hey- don’t leave me. Don’t leave me, okay? Please - please don’t leave me.” Your fingers twitch once.

Weak. Barely there. But it’s enough. Spencer grabs your hand immediately like it’s a lifeline.

“Yeah,” he chokes out, crying openly now, forehead pressing to yours. “Yeah, that’s it. That’s it. Come back to me. Come back—please, just come back to me.” Your shiver, a soft whimper drawing from your lips.

"I-I'm tired." You manage, shaking your head. Blood from your abdomen is still soaking your shirt, your pants, and Spencer is shaking.

"You-You can't sleep, baby. You have to- You have to stay awake. Keep your eyes open." The antidote has taken effect. The colour that had drained from your skin over the hour is coming back, and your breathing has returned to a normal pace. And the pain flooding back into your body is unbearable. You can feel the blood pumping out of you from your abdomen, and you groan weakly as you try to press your hand over the wound, only to find Spencer's hand already lodged there. You gulp, bringing your hand up to softly touch Spencer's cheek.

"Yo-You came for me." You rasp. Spencer chokes on a laugh, a desperate, wet thing.

"Of course I did." He mumbles. "How could I not ? God.." He gulps, shaking his head. "I love you." You smile, holding back tears as you cough. Your body trembles with shivers, and you groan.

"I-I'm sorry." You rasp, shaking your head. Spencer's heart drops. He shakes his head.

"Hey, hey- no. Don't apologise, you're going to be just fine, okay ? Y-You're going to be fine." You nod, smiling through the pain. You want to believe him.

You really do.

The antidote is working.

Derek said it is. Spencer knows it is. But you’re still so cold. Still shaking in his arms like your body can’t decide whether to stay or let go.

Spencer sniffles, brushing your hair away from your face.

"The ambulance is gonna be here any minute. They're going to make you all better. Okay ?" You nod.

"Okay." You say, forcing a smile, choking on the blood that creeps its way up your throat. "I love you, Spence." You rasp, shaking your head. Spencer’s heart hammers against his ribs, a frantic, desperate drumbeat of denial. He tightens his grip on your hand, bringing it to his lips, pressing a kiss to your cold knuckles.

“Don’t you dare say that like it’s a goodbye,” he orders, his voice a raw, broken thing. “It’s not a goodbye. You hear me? It’s an ‘I’ll see you in a minute.’ We’re going to have so much to talk about. Y-You're gonna rub this in my face, yeah ? Brag about how you-you survived this and i panicked for nothing.” He’s rambling, his brilliant mind reduced to a single, primal function: keep you here. Keep you with him. Your eyes are still on him, but they’re starting to lose focus, the light in them dimming like a candle in a draft. The smile on your lips is a ghost, beautiful and terrifying.

“Spence…” you whisper, and it’s the worst sound he’s ever heard, thin and reedy, threaded with the liquid rattle of fluid in your lungs. “It’s… so quiet.” He doesn’t understand what you mean. The room is chaos-Hotch’s clipped commands, Derek’s frantic pacing, the sound of JJ’s voice on the phone with dispatch. But then he realizes. For you, the world is collapsing. The sounds are fading, the pain is receding, and all that’s left is this.

Him.

“No, no, it’s not quiet,” he argues, his voice rising in panic. “It’s not. Just listen. Listen to me. I’m right here. I’m so loud, remember? You say I never shut up. So just… listen to me. Stay with me.” He’s pressing harder against the wound in your abdomen, a futile, desperate attempt to physically hold your life inside you. His hand is slick, warm, and the smell of copper fills the air, thick and suffocating. It’s the smell of his failure. Your breath hitches, a shallow, wet gasp.

"Tell… tell my dad… I’m sorry.” The words hit Spencer like a physical blow. Dad. Hotch, who is standing just feet away, right behind that door, pacing and shouting orders. Spencer can’t call for him. He can’t give him that. He can’t acknowledge the world beyond the circle of his arms.

“You’ll tell him yourself,” Spencer chokes out, tears streaming down his face, dripping onto your cheeks. “You’ll tell him tonight. When we get home. We’ll order Chinese food and you’ll tell him you’re sorry for worrying him, and he’ll pretend to be mad but he won’t be, and we’ll all be fine. We’ll be fine.” Your fingers, the ones he’s holding, twitch weakly. Your grip loosens. The pressure is gone. “No,” he whimpers, a sound so pathetic and full of pain it doesn’t even sound like him. “No, hold on. Hold my hand. Don’t let go. Don’t you let go of me.” Your eyes open again and you nod. He smiles, kissing your forehead. And then, through the cacophony of his own despair, he hears it. Faint at first, then growing stronger, clearer. A high, insistent wail that cuts through everything else.

Sirens.

Relief so profound it’s dizzying crashes over him. It’s the cavalry. It’s the answer. It’s another chance.

His head snaps up, his tear-blurred vision finding the window ahead.

“Did you hear that? They’re here. They’re almost here.” He looks back down at you, his face breaking into a wild, desperate grin. “You hear that, baby? You hear that? The ambulance is here. They’re here. You’re going to be okay. You’re going to be okay.” He’s laughing now, a wet, hysterical sound of pure relief, staring at the window as the red and blue lights start to show.

“We did it. We made it. Just hold on. Just a few more seconds. Please, just a few more seconds for me.” He looks back at the doorway, expecting to see the paramedics burst through with their bags and their machines and their magic. But the sirens are still distant, screaming down a street that’s too far away.

He looks back down at you. And the world stops. Your eyes are still open, but they’re not seeing him anymore. They’re fixed on a point just beyond his shoulder, glassy and vacant. The shallow rise and fall of your chest has stilled. The hand he’s clutching is limp and cool in his.

The silence in the room is absolute.

“No,” he whispers. The smile is gone from his face, wiped clean away. “No… no, no, no, no, no.” He shakes his head, a sharp, jerky motion of denial. “Hey… hey, look at me. Look at me. They’re here. The ambulance is here.” He shakes you gently, then a little harder. “Hey.. hey, look at me. You’re not allowed to do this. You’re not allowed to leave me. You hear me? C'mon, this isn't funny." He shakes you."Come on! Look at me.” But you don’t. You can’t. The sirens are closer now, screaming, a piercing, torturous sound. They’re the sound of hope arriving seven minutes too late. The door bursts open. Emily is the first one in, her face flushed and triumphant.

“Spencer! The ambulance is here, they’re coming, they’re—” She stops. Her eyes find Spencer, cradling your still body on the floor, and she sees everything. The blood. The stillness. The absolute, soul-crushing devastation on his face. Her triumphant shout dies in her throat, replaced by a small, choked gasp. Hotch is right behind her. He takes in the scene with one sweeping, all-seeing glance. He sees Kessler’s handiwork, he sees the discarded antidote, he sees Spencer on the floor. And then he sees you. He doesn’t make a sound. The unit chief, the man who faces monsters for a living, simply breaks. His shoulders slump, his face goes slack, and all the color drains from his skin. He stumbles forward a half-step, his hand reaching out, then falling back to his side. He knows. Emily rushes to Spencer’s side, her hand hovering over his shoulder, afraid to touch.

“Spencer…?” He doesn’t answer. He’s lowered his head, burying his face in the crook of your neck, his body wracked with huge, silent, violent sobs that shake him to his core. He holds you tighter, rocking you back and forth, a desperate, rhythmic motion.

And Spencer Reid - who has spent his entire life understanding loss in theory before he ever had to survive it in practice - lets out a sound that is not human.

It rips out of him.

Raw.

Shattered.

“No - no, no, no, please - please, please - ” He pulls you closer instantly, like he can reverse it if he just holds you tighter.

Like physics can be negotiated.

Like love is supposed to win this.

“I’ve got you,” he says again, but it’s falling apart now. “I’ve got you, I’ve got you, I’ve got you- You're okay. You're okay, you're okay, you're okay-”

"Reid." Derek's voice echoes around the small space. Spencer shakes his head. Spencer doesn’t hear him anymore.

Doesn’t hear Emily crying.

Doesn’t hear the radio chatter suddenly erupting outside as the medics arrive too late.

He just holds you. Like if he stops, even for a second, the truth will finish settling. Sirens flood the building outside. Red and blue light strobing through the broken doorway.

And still -Spencer is whispering your name into your hair like it’s a spell.

Like it’s the only thing left that still makes sense.

The paramedics finally burst through the doorway, their practiced efficiency grinding to a halt as they take in the scene. No one moves. No one breathes. The paramedics slowly back out of the room, hushed whispers echoing in the small space.

Spencer looks up, devastated.

"No.. No, where are they going ? They-They have to save her, they-"

"Reid." Derek rasps again, wiping at the tears falling down his face. He looks back down at you like it’s instinct, like he can anchor himself in you. But you don’t move. Not even a tremor. Not even the smallest betrayal of life returning. Just stillness. Heavy and final.

Spencer’s breath stutters.

Once. Twice.

Then completely stops behaving like it belongs to him.

His hand shakes as it smooths over your hair. So careful. So tender. Like you’re made of glass and he’s terrified of what happens if he presses too hard.

Emily makes a sound behind him—small, broken, human.

“Spencer…” she tries again, stepping closer like she might physically pull him out of it. But he flinches at her voice like it burns.

“No,” he snaps instantly, sharper than he means it. Then it collapses immediately into desperation. “No, no—don’t—” Hotch is still at the doorway. Still completely still. Like something inside him shut off in self-defense the second he understood. But his eyes don’t leave you. Not once. Not even when Rossi puts a hand on his arm and squeezes like he’s trying to hold him together by force. Spencer presses his forehead to yours again.

Harder this time. Like proximity alone can reverse biology.

“I got you,” he whispers, voice breaking into pieces now. “I got you, I got you, I got you—” His sentences stop making sense. They turn into fragments. Into breath. Into something raw and animal and terrified. “I didn’t—” he chokes, pulling you closer like he can physically shield you from the truth, “I didn’t get here fast enough. I didn’t—I didn’t—”

Derek steps forward again, slower this time. Careful. Like approaching something sacred and shattered.

“Reid,” he says quietly. “Kid…” Spencer shakes his head violently again.

“No,” he says again, but weaker now. So much weaker. “No, no, no- Just - just help her. Just - just fix it. Fix it - please - ” His voice breaks completely on the last word. And then he tries again, because Spencer Reid has always believed that understanding something well enough means you can change it. “If I - if I give her CPR - if I - if we - ” His hands move like they don’t belong to him anymore as they lay you down on the ground, flat on your back.

One presses to your chest. Wrong. Desperate. Begging.

“Spencer,” Emily says softly, tears finally spilling over now. “Spencer, stop—”

“No!” he shouts suddenly, panicked, frantic. “No, no, I can— I can do it. I can fix it. I can- I can-” His voice disintegrates mid-sentence. Because your body doesn’t respond. Because nothing changes. Because time doesn’t care how hard he tries. And that’s when it hits him all at once.

Not gradually. Not gently. All at once. Spencer goes completely still.

His hands freeze where they are on you. His breath catches like it’s been hooked on something sharp. He falls backwards, his hands coated in blood coming up to press against his eyes as he sobs. Emily is by his side in an instant, pulling him into her, rocking him as Derek sniffles and gets to his feet, walking over to your and softly guiding your eyes shut. Hotch swears under his breath, wrecked sobs escaping him, and he turns away from you, gasping for air as he rushes out into the night. Luke, Tara, JJ and Rossi have gathered in the doorway, watching as Derek grabs a folded sheet from one of the drawers and lays it down over you, clearing his throat.

"The- uh, the EMT's should come back in here. Take-" He clears his throat, "Take her to the morgue."

The timer beeps behind them like some sick alarm clock. They all look back and the flashing numbers.

00:00:00.

The seven minutes are up.

taglist !

You adjusted the mask over your mouth, eyes narrowing through the faint slit in your hood. Rage simmered under your skin, but you kept it contained, shoved deep where it needed to stay. You weren’t here to indulge in anger. You were here to bring them down.

Your ear piece vibrated against your ear before you heard a voice finally cut through.

"Remember. Left door. Be completely ready, we're not exactly sure what we're dealing with, Agent." Hotch murmured, sounding slightly out of breath. "I'm connecting you to Agent Reid and Agent Prentiss."

You pressed your back tighter against the wall, the cool bite of concrete seeping through your tactical gear. The weight of the knives at your thigh and the Glock at your hip was familiar, grounding.

The faint crackle of static brushed against your ear before Spencer's voice, clear and precise, slipped into the comm.

"Thermal imaging shows two heat signatures inside. The one closest to the door is pacing — heightened adrenaline, based on their movement pattern. Be careful, sweetheart."

You almost smiled at the soft edge in his voice, the way he couldn't quite scrub the worry out, even masked under the clinical facts. The pet name, too.

"Copy," you whispered, adjusting your grip on the weapon, boots silent against the ground. You shifted your stance, ready to breach.

"Remember," Spencer added, a little quicker this time, "the floorboards are unstable. Avoid the northwest corner."

You breathed out slowly, steadying yourself. "I’ve got this," you murmured, barely moving your lips.

A beat of silence. Then, softer than before: "I know you do."

The world narrowed to the rush of blood in your ears, the slight hum of Spencer's connection, the door handle cool beneath your glove. With a fluid movement, you breached — low, fast, controlled — slipping into the darkness with the ghostlike precision that had once made you the team’s most dangerous weapon. All Spencer, Hotch, and Prentiss heard was a groan. A crack. The clear misfire of a gun into the air, most likely the unsub. Some gurgling. And then silence for about 30 to 45 seconds. Following that, the sound of your boots on the concrete floor until they finally spotted you leaving the warehouse, your gloves glistening with a slight tint of blood.

In front of you, your fingers twisted around his arm, was the primary unsub. His face was twisted in pain, his eyes watery. His ankle was clearly broken — he couldn't put weight on it. His wrists were securely cuffed behind him.

"Where's the other one?" Hotch muttered, still watching you as you dragged the scummy man from the warehouse, a scowl on your face.

"Incapacitated, most likely. The thermal imaging showed us through his body language that he was the more aggressive perpetrator," Spencer explained. "He probably rushed her. You know how she operates. It didn't go well for him, it's safe to assume."

Hotch nodded once, almost to himself, and started toward you with long strides. Spencer’s voice, still in your ear, stayed low and steady:

"Are you okay?"

You tightened your grip on the unsub’s arm, yanking him forward when he tried to stumble back. “I’m fine,” you muttered under your breath, only loud enough for Spencer to catch through the comms.

The unsub groaned, letting a weak complaint fall from his lips.

"This isn't over, man. You'll wish you hadn't done this."

You raised an eyebrow under your mask, a snide smirk pulling at your lips.

"Man?" You questioned.

Shoving the man at Hotch, who caught him with strong arms, you pulled your gloves off, revealing manicured fingers with a glittering wedding ring. Next, you yanked your mask off

The man's eyes widened. You definitely weren't a man.

Your simmering e/c eyes narrowed as you leaned into the unsub's disgusting face.

"It would be unfair to let another man put you in prison to rot. This is a job for a woman." You hissed.

Through your earpiece, you heard it — just barely — Spencer's breath catching. Like even after everything, after years together, he still got a little starstruck when he saw you like this.

The unsub flinched back instinctively, his bravado crumbling to ash under the weight of your gaze. You watched the realization dawn in his greasy, fearful eyes — the slow, sickening understanding that the person who had taken him down, who had bested him so completely, wasn’t some towering agent he could excuse away.

It was you. A woman. And he had no power here. No ability to cause fear.

You straightened slowly, tugging off your hood and letting your hair fall free around your shoulders. Your skin glistened faintly with sweat, a testament to the fight, but your face was calm. Colder than death.

Hotch yanked the man back roughly, giving you the room you deserved — and the unsub the bruises he deserved.

"Take him," Hotch ordered curtly to the backup agents swarming the scene. His sharp gaze slid back to you, giving the briefest, almost imperceptible nod of respect before turning away.

The second unsub was found not long after, crumpled in a heap behind a set of rusted crates. Unconscious, but alive — just. A shallow, rasping breath, a broken arm, and a knife wound expertly placed between muscle and bone, enough pain to make moving impossible, but not enough to kill. You knew exactly where to cut.

"Secondary secure," Morgan called out, cuffing him with a harsh snap. "Remind me never to piss you off, kid."

Your hair stuck to your forehead with sweat, but your face was calm, cold. A mirror of what you had been trained to be — and what you had become all on your own.

Spencer caught up to you outside the warehouse, his Kevlar vest still tight across his chest, his weapon lowered but his body tense. His eyes scanned you immediately, flickering from your face to your arms to your gear, checking for blood that wasn’t the enemy’s.

When he saw none, his shoulders dropped a fraction, his hand brushing against your wrist in a fleeting, secret touch.

"You’re incredible," he whispered, too quiet for anyone but you to hear.

You gave him a crooked smile, exhaustion setting into your bones now that the adrenaline was bleeding out.

There were many nights like this. For years and years, your training had allowed you to be the BAU's muscle, their door kicker, their enforcer. You were lethal, especially when it came to the death or terrorization of women.

Eventually, though, your heart longed for more. You longed for a family. You wanted to be a mother, a homemaker, a wife more than a weapon.

After years of service for the FBI, you resigned. You paid your respects to the BAU and moved on.

After a year of working a desk job, you were pregnant. You were absolutely ecstatic. The night you'd taken the test, Spencer came home from work, tired and drained. But when he saw you standing in the doorway with the positive pregnancy test, he was immediately revived. He scooped you up into a tight hug, lifting you up and kissing you passionately.

You were finally going to become parents.

You genuinely couldn't have been happier.

Nine months later, you gave birth to a daughter. Aubrey Diana Reid.

She was beautiful. Spencer had bawled when he finally got to hold her, her little hand curling around his finger. He was instantly in love.

One year after Aubrey, you were pregnant again, as if things could get any better. Spencer was so excited he couldn't even fathom it. Aubrey was already a gift, her brown eyes and dark curly hair making her identical to her father. Another child? The two of you must've been dreaming.

You gave birth to a baby boy, Owen Spencer Reid.

In the early years of their lives, Aubrey and Owen had always been incredibly close, despite their very different personalities. Aubrey, with her sharp mind and a tendency to dissect everything around her, was a natural mimic of Spencer. Her eyes were full of curiosity, much like his, always asking questions about the world, the people around her, and how things worked. Spencer often found himself getting lost in deep explanations for her, the same way he had as a child. She took after him in more ways than one — academically brilliant, book smart, and a touch socially awkward. Yet, her confidence was undeniable, especially when it came to a subject she was passionate about.

She thrived in science and literature, following in Spencer's footsteps, but there was a subtle fierceness to her. She had a protective streak a mile wide, especially when it came to Owen. Aubrey didn't back down from a challenge, much like Spencer when it came to his work — a mixture of intellect and unrelenting focus.

Owen, on the other hand, was a different creature entirely. He was more like you — fiercely independent, with a bit of a rebellious streak. While Aubrey spent hours studying or quietly reading in her room, Owen preferred hands-on activities, much to your delight and sometimes your frustration. He didn’t always see the point of sitting in a classroom when the world was waiting for him to go out and explore it. He had an adventurous side, always running headfirst into trouble, sometimes without thinking, but there was an undeniable charm about him, much like you when you were his age. You often found yourself reminding him of your own youthful stubbornness and the consequences of diving in without a plan.

Spencer, being who he was, often provided the balance. He would sit down with Owen, using his usual calm and logical explanations to help him see the bigger picture, while you took on the role of the "bad cop," keeping him grounded in reality. That dynamic kept their personalities in check, but there were moments when the differences between Aubrey and Owen really showed. Aubrey was the planner, the one who thought before acting, while Owen often jumped straight into things — a mix of your energy and his father’s ability to talk his way out of sticky situations.

By the time they reached their teens, both kids had found their paths. Aubrey was excelling in school, leading science clubs, and even talking about possibly pursuing a career similar to Spencer’s, though she was leaning more toward teaching or research. Owen, on the other hand, had a natural talent for sports and was known to sneak into local competitions or push his physical limits when he wasn’t causing trouble.

Family dinners were a mix of debates, laughter, and the usual chaos, but underneath it all, there was an overwhelming sense of pride. Watching Aubrey and Owen grow, with all the knowledge they absorbed and the experiences they lived through, reminded you of just how far they’d come — how much they’d learned from both you and Spencer.

As Aubrey turned 16 and Owen 15, you saw glimpses of the people they would become. Aubrey, with Spencer’s brilliance and your tenacity, had the world at her feet. Owen, with your drive and Spencer’s charisma, was ready to take on whatever came his way — though you often had to remind him to slow down and think things through first.

In a quiet moment one evening, you caught Spencer looking at the two of them with a soft smile, eyes glimmering with pride. You shared a look, knowing that, while you may have been the one to step away from the FBI, your family — your children — had been raised to carry on both your legacies in their own way.

You'd successfully kept your past from their discovery for 16 years. In the eyes of your children, you were ever gentle, yet strict. You couldn't hurt a fly, but you could run a household. They could push the limits, as you were soft with your babies, but when they got a specific look, they knew the leniency was over.

Long story short, you were the stricter parent.

Every year that passed, you forgot more and more about what you were hiding from the kids. Your life was peaceful, happy.

Until one fall evening.

Aubrey had gone to a birthday party with her friends. According to her, it was just two blocks away, there would be no drinking, and she wouldn't be walking alone at night — she had her friend Lily with her. Not to mention, ever overprotective (similarly to his father) Owen walked her there and back.

In fact, that was the only way Spencer allowed her to walk.

That evening, as the house settled into the familiar rhythm of a quiet night, you were curled up on the couch, your eyes flicking between the book in your hands and the soft glow of the TV. Spencer had just finished his latest case, and though the fatigue was evident in his posture, his mind was always alert. His gaze occasionally flicked to the clock, to the door, as if checking the time and waiting for Aubrey’s return.

You yawned, closing your book.

Spencer's brown eyes fell onto you, a warm smile curling onto his lips.

"Tired, baby?"

You smiled softly, stretching as you set the book aside. "Yeah, a little. It’s been a long day."

Spencer nodded, his smile widening as he shifted closer on the couch, reaching over to tuck a loose strand of hair behind your ear. His touch was comforting, familiar, a gesture you both had come to cherish in the quiet moments.

"I know," he said, his voice low and soothing. "But the house feels empty without the kids running around, doesn’t it?" He glanced toward the clock again, his brows knitting slightly as he checked the time. "Aubrey should be back soon."

You followed his gaze, a soft sense of unease creeping up on you. "She’ll be fine. Owen's with her, after all."

Spencer nodded again, though the flicker of concern in his eyes never fully dissipated. "I know. It’s just hard to let go, even when I know she’s capable."

You chuckled lightly, resting your head on his shoulder. "She’s more than capable, Spencer. She’s got you in her blood."

His chest rumbled with a low laugh, his fingers gently brushing through your hair. "I guess she does," he admitted. "Just... can’t help but worry. She’s still our little girl."

You settled deeper into his side, taking comfort in his closeness. "I know. But she’s strong, and so is Owen. They’ve got each other, just like we had each other when we were their age."

Spencer sighed, his arm wrapping around you more securely. "True. And I’m proud of them. Both of them." He glanced back toward the door. "I just wish they didn’t have to grow up so fast."

You nodded, tracing small circles on his arm. "They’re not little anymore. But they’re still ours."

The quiet comfort of the moment settled over you both, and for a brief moment, you let yourself bask in the peacefulness, the warmth of the family you had built together. The thought of the kids growing up, stepping into their own lives, was bittersweet. You knew the future would come with its challenges, but you also knew they would face it with strength — the same strength that had been passed down through you and Spencer.

You had just started to doze, but then, the phone rang. You jolted awake, a sense of anxiety immediately coming over you. The contact "Aub" lit up your screen.

You and Spencer made tense eye contact. She hardly ever called, especially if she was with friends.

Immediately, you grabbed the phone, answering.

"Hi, sweetheart. What's up?" You answered, now wide awake.

You heard Aubrey's heavy breathing through the phone. You immediately tensed.

"Mom," She said, her voice a whisper, laced with fear. "I'm scared." She rushed out.

You felt your heart drop at the sound of her voice — strained, panicked. Spencer was already beside you, his expression hardening as he read the concern on your face. His hand found yours, a silent promise that you weren't alone in this.

"Aubrey?" you said softly, trying to calm your racing heart. "Sweetheart, what’s going on? Are you hurt? Where are you?"

You could hear her breathing shallowly, her words coming in quick bursts. "We were on our way back... from the party, and... and there was a man. He came out of nowhere. Following us. We— we ran, but I don’t know if he knows where we went." She paused, and you could hear her trying to steady herself. "Mom, I... I don't know what to do."

You exchanged a quick glance with Spencer. He was already moving toward the door, his hand on the edge of the knob, but you knew he was waiting for you to speak first. You needed to keep her calm.

"Aubrey, listen to me," you said, your voice firm yet soothing. "You're okay, you're safe. I need you to tell me exactly where you are, and I’ll come get you. I’m on my way, okay? Stay on the phone with me."

Spencer didn’t wait for further instructions. He was already pulling on his jacket, his movements sharp and deliberate. The calm before the storm had evaporated in an instant.

"I’m just two blocks away from the house," Aubrey said, her voice trembling, though she was clearly trying to sound composed. "I don’t think he followed, but I— I’m not sure."

You could feel your protective instincts flare to life. "You’re not alone, right?" you asked, needing the reassurance.

"I have Owen and Lily," she replied, her voice wavering just slightly. "They're-- they're staying with me."

Relief flooded you for a moment at the mention of Owen, but the anxiety remained. There was still something about the situation that felt off — the fact that Aubrey was even calling in the first place made it clear that this wasn’t something she’d take lightly. The way she had said "I'm scared" sent a cold shiver down your spine.

"Good," you said, keeping your voice as steady as you could. "Just stay close to him, and don’t leave the spot you’re at. We’re on our way, baby."

Spencer was already halfway to the door, keys in hand. You followed suit, grabbing your own jacket. "We’ll be there in five minutes, okay? Stay on the phone with me until we get there."

Aubrey let out a small, shaky breath. "Okay... okay, Mom. I’ll... I’ll wait for you."

Before she could say anything else, you heard a faint noise in the background, a voice you didn’t quite recognize — low and gruff, but too distant to make out clearly. Aubrey’s breath hitched again, and in that moment, you knew the fear in her voice wasn’t just from the man. Something else was wrong.

You moved quicker, your heart thundering in your chest. "Aubrey, stay with Owen. We’re almost there," you urged, your voice sharpening with every second.

But as you turned to head out the door, you heard her voice again, just barely above a whisper, almost drowned out by the distance between you.

"Mom... he’s still out there."

A cold wave of dread swept over you.

Without wasting another second, Spencer opened the door, and you both rushed out into the night, your footsteps rapid as your mind raced. Something had just shifted — something wasn’t right, and you could feel it deep in your bones.

And for the first time in sixteen years, you couldn’t hide from what was waiting in the shadows.

You felt it sink into your bones. The adrenaline you'd once had, the bulletproof vest, the gloves, the crack of bones, the sound of gunfire. Your fists squeezed together as Spencer went 30 over the speed limit, racing to the park Aubrey said they were hiding in.

You could feel Spencer's eyes on you every few seconds.

The car hummed with tension, the tires skimming the asphalt as Spencer’s hands gripped the wheel with a familiar intensity. The glow of the streetlights flickered past, casting fleeting shadows across his face. Every few seconds, his gaze would flick to you, and you could see the worry in his eyes — the same look he gave you when you’d worked cases together, when something dangerous was always lurking just ahead.

But this was different.

This wasn’t some cold case. This was your daughter.

And you knew exactly how dangerous this could be.

Your mind flashed back to everything you had kept buried for so long — the world of shadows, of criminals, of threats, of danger. The world that you thought you had left behind. You’d tried so hard to shield your family from it, to make sure they were safe, far from the chaos of your past. But now, in this moment, you could feel the threads pulling you back into it, into the place you thought you’d left for good.

Your fists tightened, nails digging into your palms, and you couldn't stop the wave of memories rushing at you. The feel of a gun’s cold weight in your hand, the thrill of a pursuit, the focus of a high-stakes situation. It had all become so second nature once, so automatic. But now, it was something foreign — and terrifying. The last thing you wanted was to drag Spencer back into that world, to risk what you had built, to risk them.

But Aubrey was in danger. Aubrey was your priority.

You swallowed hard, trying to ground yourself. The fear gnawed at you, but the instinct to protect kicked in, and with it came an almost involuntary calm.

“We’re almost there,” Spencer said, voice tight, but you could hear the focus in it.

You nodded, but you couldn’t stop the flood of thoughts. What if something had happened? What if they hadn’t made it to the park safely? What if the man had already found them? The world felt suddenly too small, too suffocating.

Spencer glanced at you again, his jaw set, eyes hard with concern. “You okay?”

You gave him a tight, almost imperceptible nod. “I’m fine. Just... just get us there, Spence.”

He didn’t need to hear any more. The way you said it — the edge in your voice — was enough for him. You could tell, in the way his knuckles whitened on the wheel, that he was pushing himself to go even faster, to get to them in time.

You glanced out the window, watching as the park finally came into view. You could see the shadow of the trees in the distance, a dark outline against the dim glow of the surrounding streetlights. There was no sign of them yet, no movement.

You didn’t even wait for Spencer to pull the car fully to a stop before you were out, your feet hitting the ground hard.

You were silent, running through the park. You didn't want to call out and reveal the position of the kids — your decade with the FBI gave you enough skill to find them.

You didn't have to search long, unfortunately. You heard a scream, undeniably your daughter's. Your blood ran cold, Spencer hot on your heels as you followed the sound.

When you reached the area, the scene you saw was enough to make the full transition into who you were before.

Everything went silent. There was a ringing in your ears. Aubrey, screaming on the ground with a man in ragged clothes perched above her. A knife in hand. Owen, a bruised eye, crouching behind a tree — clearly having tried his luck protecting his sister. Lily, hiding behind a park shrub, crying softly.

Your body moved on instinct, the years of training flooding back like muscle memory. The ringing in your ears faded as the world sharpened — everything slowing down around you, the adrenaline and focus taking over. Spencer's presence at your back was a reassurance, but this was your fight now.

You didn’t hesitate. Your eyes locked on the man, the glint of the knife reflecting the dim light. Aubrey's cry was still echoing in your mind, but it was drowned out by the pounding of your heart, by the pull of your muscles working with precision, as if your body knew what it had to do.

“Get away from her,” you growled, taking a step forward, your voice steady, cold.

The man, clearly startled, whipped his head around, the blade still hovering dangerously close to Aubrey’s throat. But there was no hesitation on your end. You knew what you had to do.

You lunged.

The first move was fluid, calculated, as you closed the distance between you and the man. His knife slashed through the air, but you dodged, narrowly missing the sharp edge. Your palm connected with his wrist in a swift motion, the crack of bone echoing through the park as you disarmed him with a force that surprised even you.

The knife fell to the ground with a sharp clatter.

His wide eyes locked with yours in shock, as if he hadn’t expected you to be this skilled. His next move was an instinctual, desperate grab for your throat — but you were already two steps ahead.

You spun, grabbing his arm, twisting it behind his back, leveraging your body weight and speed to slam him face-first into the ground. The impact reverberated through your limbs, but you didn’t stop. Your hand was around his neck before he could move, pinning him down as your knee dug into his back, the pressure enough to keep him there.

For a moment, the world seemed frozen. The sound of Aubrey’s ragged breathing, the rustle of leaves in the wind, the sniffles of Lily hiding — it all blurred together, background noise to the chaos of the moment.

Spencer was there now, pulling the knife away from the man’s reach, his eyes scanning the scene quickly. “Call the police,” you said, your voice grim but steady, protective instinct kicking in. “We need backup.”

You didn’t let your hold on the man waver. Your hand was tight around his neck, and you could feel the pulse of your own heartbeat pounding in your ears. You wanted to keep him there, make sure he couldn’t hurt anyone again, but your gaze flicked to Aubrey and Owen — seeing them safe was all that mattered now.

Slowly, you released the man’s neck, pushing him off to the side. Spencer was already pulling out his phone, dialing the authorities. The sense of control you had been holding onto began to slip away as the reality of the situation hit you.

You turned to Aubrey first, crouching down in front of her. Her eyes were wide with shock, her breathing still erratic.

“You okay?” you asked gently, your voice soothing despite the tension in your chest.

Aubrey nodded, though her eyes were filled with a mix of fear and awe. “Mom... what... who are you?”

The question hung in the air like a weight you weren’t prepared for. You declined to answer.

“I’m someone who will always protect you,” you said softly, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “No matter what.”

Spencer was standing beside you now, his expression unreadable, but there was no hiding the concern in his eyes. He could see the questions in Aubrey's mind, the unspoken confusion that was settling in.

“It’s okay,” Spencer said, placing a reassuring hand on Aubrey’s shoulder. “We’ll explain everything when we’re safe. You’re alright. That’s what matters now.”

But the weight of the situation was far from over. You could feel the sharp edge of fear creeping in again. You had just revealed something to them that you had kept hidden for years. The calm, gentle life you had worked so hard to build — the one you had shielded them from — had shattered in an instant.

Your past, your skills, your training... they were now part of their reality. And you knew things could never go back to the way they were before.

The distant wail of sirens grew louder, and you stepped back, pulling Aubrey into a tight hug. “We’re okay. You’re safe.”

Owen stepped forward, his eyes wide but full of relief. He reached for Aubrey’s hand, his grip tight. “I told you I’d protect you.”

You could see the pride in his eyes, the same protective instinct that had run through Spencer’s veins. For a moment, you let yourself bask in that small comfort. You’d done it. You’d protected them. And for tonight, that was enough.

But you knew the questions were coming. And soon, you'd have to face what you’d been hiding from them all these years.

The police arrived, but you stayed silent, letting Spencer handle the situation. You had done your part. Now, you just had to keep them safe — no matter what.

You went home that night, returning Lily to her parents and bringing your children home. Spencer held your hand tightly.

It was silent in the house. Tense. Full of unanswered questions.

With no words, refusing to address it, you gave Aubrey and Owen ice and medicine for their bumps and bruises. You made them change their dirty, mud covered clothes. You made them tomato soup with grilled cheese.

You did just about anything to distract yourself from the elephant in the room. But Aubrey? She wasn't going to let it go.

Aubrey had been unusually quiet at first, sitting at the table with her soup, her eyes scanning you as though trying to piece together the woman she’d seen fight a man off her brother just hours ago. But after a while, it became clear that she wouldn’t be able to hold back much longer.

“You’re not telling me something,” Aubrey said quietly, breaking the silence. She had been watching you from across the kitchen, the weight of her gaze heavy. “I know something’s wrong. What was that? Who are you?”

You froze for a moment, spoon halfway to your mouth, and then you forced yourself to swallow, keeping your face neutral. But inside, the panic was already setting in. You couldn't look at her, not yet.

“Aubrey, I told you, we’ll talk about it later,” you said softly, trying to keep your voice steady.

Owen, sitting beside his sister, cast a glance between the two of you, his brow furrowing as the tension became more palpable. Aubrey’s eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward, her voice cutting through the thick air.

“No. Now. I’m not stupid, Mom. I saw it. You — you did something. And it’s not the first time either, is it? You’re not the person I thought you were.”

Your stomach twisted as her words hit you, sharp and accusing, but you held your ground. “Aubrey, please. It’s complicated. Just eat your soup and—”

“No! You’re not going to dodge me, Mom.” Her voice rose, frustration lining every word. “You can’t just— that isn’t normal. What was all that back there? You fought him. And you were so— I don’t know— so calm. It was like you knew exactly what to do! Who are you?!”

The questioning kept coming, one after the other, no space to breathe in between.

You could feel the pressure mounting in your chest, the questions swirling, and a storm was building in your mind, a flood of emotion you couldn’t contain anymore. Your eyes were burning as you stood up abruptly from the table, knocking your chair back in the process. The force of your anger had been building, and it finally burst.

“Enough, Aubrey!” you snapped, your voice sharp, and for the first time in years, you let the edge of your old self spill through. You didn’t care about being gentle.

You took a step back, your breath coming fast, chest rising and falling as the weight of your words hung in the air. Aubrey’s mouth opened, but you cut her off before she could speak.

“Stop!” you shouted, a wave of frustration spilling over. “Stop asking questions. I’m your mother. And I will do anything to protect you. That's all you need to know."

Without another word, you turned on your heel, storming out of the kitchen, leaving a stunned Aubrey in your wake.

You heard the sound of Owen’s voice behind you, calling for you, but you couldn’t stop. You couldn’t stay.

You made it to your bedroom, slamming the door behind you, and the second the lock clicked into place, you collapsed onto the bed, your head buried in your hands. The tears you hadn’t allowed yourself to shed, the weight you hadn’t let yourself feel, finally broke free.

But just as quickly, the door creaked open. Spencer stepped inside, his presence immediately calming but heavy with the understanding that you were teetering on the edge of something you couldn’t control anymore.

You didn’t look up at him, still too ashamed of the storm you had just unleashed on your daughter. The silence between you both was thick, but it didn’t need words. Spencer knew.

“Let me talk to her,” he said quietly. “I’ll explain. I know you didn’t want them to know this, but they deserve to hear it, especially after the night they had.”

You nodded, feeling the exhaustion pull at your bones, the guilt gnawing at your insides.

Spencer sat down beside you, rubbing a hand over your back. "It's okay," he murmured softly. "We’ll get through this together."

You took a shuddering breath, your heart aching. “I just… I didn’t want them to see me like this. To see that part of me. I just wanted to protect them from the things I’ve done, the things I’ve become…”

“I know,” Spencer whispered. “But we’re both here, and we’ll handle it. You’re still the same person. And they need to know that, too.”

You nodded again, wiping away the last of the tears as you looked up at him, eyes tired but filled with love. “Thank you. For always being here. For them.”

He kissed your forehead gently. “Always.”

You both knew this was just the beginning of a conversation that would change everything. But for now, you let Spencer go to talk to the kids, trusting him to bridge the gap between the past you were trying to bury and the family you’d fought so hard to build.

The house was eerily quiet when Spencer sat down with Aubrey and Owen. They were both sitting on the couch, eyes still wide with the aftermath of what had happened, the tension from earlier thick in the air. They hadn't said much since the confrontation — only whispers exchanged between them and glances that held more questions than answers.

Spencer knew it was time to do this, but his heart ached at the thought of having to explain a part of their mother’s past that he’d kept hidden for so long. A part of you that no one, not even Aubrey and Owen, had ever known about.

He cleared his throat, looking between them, before speaking gently, but with the weight of authority only a parent could have. "Aubrey, Owen... there’s something your mother and I need to explain to you. It’s not easy, and it’s not something she’s wanted you to know. But after what happened tonight, you deserve to hear it. All of it."

Aubrey, sitting up a little straighter, looked at him with a mix of curiosity and fear. "What do you mean, Dad? What happened tonight? What’s going on with Mom?"

Spencer glanced at her and then at Owen, who had a bruised eye but remained unusually still, his gaze serious. He could see that they were both holding back the storm of questions they wanted to ask, but they were waiting for him to start, to give them something.

"Your mom..." Spencer hesitated, his heart heavy. "She’s been through a lot before you two were born. A lot of things that she’s kept from you, kept from both of you, to protect you. I think it’s time you knew the truth. So, here it is."

He paused again, trying to choose his words carefully. He wasn’t sure how they would react, but he had to be honest, for all their sakes.

"Your mother used to be part of the FBI, just like me," he said, his voice low but steady. "A special agent. She was really good at what she did. But that life... it’s dangerous. It changes you."

Aubrey’s eyes narrowed, and Owen shifted uncomfortably, the weight of his father's words settling over them.

"What do you mean by 'dangerous'?" Aubrey asked, her voice trembling slightly. "Did she… kill people? Was she a killer?"

Spencer shook his head quickly, his gaze softening. "No. It wasn’t like that. She did things to protect people. But there were risks, and it wasn’t always clean. She didn’t have a choice sometimes. She had to make hard decisions, ones that I couldn’t protect her from."

Owen frowned, trying to process the information. "So, she was like… a cop? Or something else?"

"More than that," Spencer replied quietly. "She worked undercover. She tracked down criminals, got close to dangerous people. And sometimes, she had to fight her way out of situations. She was trained to handle threats, both physical and mental. But she left that all behind when you both were born. She walked away from it. For you. For us."

Aubrey’s eyes searched his face, confusion and fear mixing in her expression. "But why didn’t you ever tell us? Why didn’t Mom?"

Spencer sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. "Because she wanted to protect you. Protect us. From the things she had to do, from the people she had to face. She didn’t want you to know that side of her life. She wanted you to know her as your mom. Not someone who could fight, who could kill when necessary. She wanted to be your mother, not a stranger from her past."

"But… why did she freak out tonight?" Owen asked quietly. "Why did she get so angry?"

Spencer’s throat tightened, but he pushed through. "Tonight... Tonight, your mother had to step back into that part of her life. That side of her that she thought she could leave behind. She did what she had to do to protect you, Aubrey, to protect both of you. And when she saw you in danger, everything inside her came back. The instincts, the training... it all came rushing back."

Aubrey’s face twisted with understanding, but there was still something she needed to know. "And you... you let her do that? You knew what she was, what she used to do?"

Spencer nodded slowly, his voice thick with emotion. "I knew. But I loved her. I knew the risks, and I loved her anyway. And I always supported her. Because when she walked away from that life, she walked toward us. Toward this family."

There was silence for a moment as the weight of Spencer’s words hung in the air. The kids looked at each other, trying to piece together everything they had just heard, their minds spinning with new information. Spencer let the silence stretch, giving them time to absorb it.

Finally, Aubrey spoke up again, her voice small, but thoughtful. "So... Mom used to be like... a secret agent?"

Spencer nodded, his eyes softening. "Yes. But she’s also the person who loves you both more than anything in the world. She’s still your mom. She’s still the person who tucks you in at night and makes you breakfast. That’s who she wants you to know. But you can’t ignore the past. It’s always going to be a part of her, a part of our family."

Aubrey’s gaze softened, her voice trembling with emotion. "I just... I don’t want her to be angry at me. I don’t want her to be mad."

"She’s not mad at you," Spencer said firmly. "She’s scared. She’s scared for you, and she’s scared of the past catching up to her. But she’ll talk to you. When she’s ready."

Owen, who had been quiet the whole time, spoke up then. "Do you think she’ll be okay? After all of this? After... what happened?"

Spencer’s eyes flicked to the door of the bedroom where you were, the faint sound of muffled sobs slipping through. "We’ll be okay. We’re a family. And we’ll face whatever comes, together."

The kids were quiet again, each of them lost in their thoughts. It was a lot to take in. A lot to process. Spencer could see the storm brewing in their minds — questions without answers, fear of the unknown. But one thing was certain: they weren’t angry with you. They were just scared. Scared of the things they didn’t understand, of the secrets they didn’t know about you.

And Spencer thought, deep down, that with time, they would come to understand. He thought wrong. The understanding was almost immediate.

Spencer sat in silence for a moment, letting the quiet settle in. He could see the shift in the kids’ expressions. The tension that had gripped them was starting to fade, replaced by something else entirely. Aubrey and Owen were no longer frozen in confusion; instead, they were processing everything with a curiosity that bordered on awe.

Aubrey’s eyes sparkled slightly as she broke the silence. "So, like... Mom actually fought that guy. With her hands. That’s... that’s actually kind of awesome." She looked at Owen, a small grin tugging at her lips. "Like, she took him down all by herself!"

Owen nodded eagerly, his previously quiet demeanor gone. "Yeah! She was like, bam! One punch, and that guy was down. I didn’t even see her move. She was so fast, like a ninja or something." He added, his hands mimicking the swiftness of your movements. "I want to learn how to do that. Imagine how cool that would be."

Aubrey turned to Spencer, her eyes wide with admiration. "Dad, did you know she could do that? Like, before you told us all this? She’s a total badass." She leaned forward, her enthusiasm growing. "I bet she’s like, unstoppable."

Spencer couldn’t help but laugh, the sound light and genuine despite the heaviness of the evening. His kids were taking this all in stride far better than he expected. It wasn’t quite the reaction he had anticipated, but it was a relief.

"I’ve seen it, yeah," Spencer said, chuckling softly. "Your mom’s always been capable of handling herself. I don’t think she’s ever fully realized just how... impressive it all is." He glanced at the bedroom door, then back at his kids, his smile widening. "But I don’t think she’d want you to think that part of her life is something to look up to. It’s dangerous. What she did, what she had to do... it wasn’t easy."

Aubrey shook her head, her grin not fading in the slightest. "I don’t know, Dad. I think it’s pretty cool. I mean, imagine having a mom who can totally kick some bad guy’s butt. It’s like... I don’t know, it makes her seem like a superhero or something."

Owen jumped in, his voice bubbling with excitement. "Yeah! I bet she’s got all sorts of crazy tricks up her sleeve. Like, she could probably disarm a whole bunch of people and still look cool doing it. I wonder what other stuff she’s done. What if she’s done some spy stuff too? That’d be awesome."

Spencer raised an eyebrow, laughing again. "I think you two might be getting a little carried away here. Your mom’s not exactly... James Bond material. She’d probably rather you forget all about her past life."

Aubrey crossed her arms, a playful smirk on her face. "Maybe. You never know when we might start asking more questions about how many bad guys she’s taken down." She grinned. "Maybe we can ask her to teach us a thing or two."

Spencer’s heart lightened as he saw the shift in his kids' attitudes. The tension, the fear, the unknown — it was starting to fade, replaced by a sense of pride and a new understanding of their mother. They were finding ways to admire you, even from a distance. It felt like a step toward healing, even if it was just the beginning.

"You know," Spencer said, standing up and brushing a hand through his hair, "if you really want to learn, you’d probably need to be in tip-top shape, just like your mom was. She trained hard for everything she did."

Aubrey raised her eyebrows, a playful challenge in her tone. "I’m in. You think we could set up some training sessions? I bet Owen would love it."

Owen grinned, nodding quickly. "Yeah! Let’s do it, Dad. Teach us some moves! We could totally take down anyone who messes with us."

Spencer chuckled, shaking his head. "I’m not sure your mom would go for that, but we’ll see." He paused for a moment, then added with a smile, "But just so you know, she didn’t get those skills by practicing on her own. It’s a lot harder than you think."

Aubrey leaned back on the couch, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Well, that’s a challenge we’re willing to take. We’re totally up for it."

Spencer looked at them, a mixture of amusement and pride on his face. His kids were resilient, stronger than he gave them credit for. Maybe, just maybe, they'd come to understand the complexities of the past in their own time. But for now, it was good to see that they were finding humor, pride, and curiosity in what had been a very difficult conversation.

"Alright," Spencer said, grinning as he walked toward the door. "Get some rest. Tomorrow, we can talk more about training... if your mom's up for it." He paused, adding with a wink, "But maybe don’t push her too hard on that one."

Aubrey laughed as she and Owen exchanged a look. "We’ll go easy, Dad. Promise."

As Spencer left the room, he couldn’t help but smile to himself. It wasn’t the conversation he had expected, but it was one he could live with. At least they weren’t afraid anymore.

The next day, of course, the kids didn't keep their word about being easy on you. They bombarded you with questions, comments, and jokes, but.. Surprisingly to you, they weren't scared.

They thought you were incredible.

The morning after everything went down, you were hoping for a quiet, calm day — a little time to recover, to heal from the intensity of the night before. But, of course, that wasn’t going to happen.

You expected silence, avoidance, and fear from the kids.

You were in the kitchen, making your usual cup of coffee when you heard the sounds of Owen and Aubrey in the other room, laughing louder than usual. You raised an eyebrow as you filled your mug, already suspecting that Spencer had something to do with their newfound enthusiasm.

You stepped into the living room just in time to hear Owen, completely serious, say, "So, Mom, if we were to get into a fight, like a real one, would you just knock the other person out with a single punch?"

Aubrey chimed in, her voice filled with admiration. "Yeah! Or what if you had to take down a whole group of bad guys? Could you do that too? I bet you’d have some crazy moves to pull out."

You stood there for a moment, frozen, coffee mug in hand, blinking at them in disbelief. Then, your gaze moved to Spencer, who was sitting on the couch, a grin on his face like he was watching some sort of comedy show unfold.

"Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me," you muttered under your breath.

Spencer looked up at you, his grin only growing wider. "What? I’m just telling them the truth. They asked, I answered."

You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms over your chest as you walked into the room. "So, what, now you’re trying to make me out to be some kind of superhero?" You shot him a playful glare. "You know I didn’t want them thinking I’m some kind of action movie character."

Aubrey leaned forward, wide-eyed, clearly not backing down. "But, Mom, you're amazing! We didn’t know you could do stuff like that. It’s like you’re a ninja or something!"

Owen nodded eagerly. "Yeah, you just took that guy down like it was nothing. Do you have any other moves like that? Can you show us?"

You stared at them, your amusement growing but hiding behind your mock annoyance. "I don't know... maybe I should have kept the ‘secret agent’ thing to myself, huh?" You shot Spencer a look. "Now look what you’ve done."

Spencer raised his hands in mock surrender. "Hey, I just told them the truth. You're amazing, and they’re proud of you. What's wrong with that?"

You smirked, your eyes narrowing playfully. "You're really pushing your luck, aren’t you? You're turning my children into little action movie fans."

"Don’t act like you don’t love it," Spencer teased, his tone light, clearly enjoying the way this was unfolding. "They’re just inspired by you."

Aubrey grinned, clearly not seeing the problem. "Well, we think it’s awesome. I mean, you could probably take down anyone who messes with us, right?"

You leaned down and poked her forehead. "First of all, I do not want you kids going around starting fights thinking I’ll bail you out. And second, I'm not some kind of superhero."

Owen raised an eyebrow. "But you are pretty awesome."

You sighed dramatically, then glanced at Spencer, who was still lounging on the couch, looking way too pleased with himself. "You’re encouraging them!" you said, your tone mock-exasperated.

He held up his hands innocently. "I’m just saying what everyone’s thinking."

You shook your head, rolling your eyes. "I bet you are. Next thing I know, you’ll have them signing up for some kind of ‘Mom's Action Hero Training Camp,’" you said, the sarcasm dripping from your words.

"That sounds great!" Aubrey said, practically bouncing in her seat. "Can we start today?"

You groaned, your fingers pinching the bridge of your nose. "You two are impossible."

Spencer chuckled, finally getting up from the couch and wrapping an arm around your waist, pulling you toward him. "Hey, it’s not like they’re wrong. You’re one of a kind, and luckily, I married you."

You shot him a side-eye, still a little irritated, but the warmth of his embrace softened the edge of your annoyance.

"Maybe they'll slowly forget what you told them."

"Never," Spencer said, kissing the top of your head. "But if you want, I can help you with some training... I could probably teach them some moves too."

You pushed him away lightly with a smirk. "You’re a shithead, you know that?" But deep down, you couldn’t help the smile tugging at your lips.

As you made your way back to the kitchen to finish your coffee, the kids continued to chatter excitedly about their “action movie ideas,” with Spencer chuckling and nodding along. And despite your mock annoyance, you had to admit—there was something nice about hearing them talk like that. At least they weren’t scared of you anymore. They thought you were brave, unstoppable.