Chapter Text
The past few months with Spencer had been amazing. You had met at a local steampunk convention, dressed in a corset and ridiculously high heels. You were the only two people to attend the “History of Science Fiction and Innovation” panel, and were instantly impressed with Spencer's fascination on the topic. After that, the two of you kept running into each other around the convention center, and got down to talking at the concessions suite. You exchanged numbers and the rest was history.
He was a busy man, constantly travelling for work. It didn’t mean the two of you didn’t try and make time though. He would call you when he was away, and would try and grab quick dinners at your place when he could. Last night was date night, which ended when you fell asleep cuddled into his side on the coach. Unfortunately duty calls, and Spencer was forced to leave that morning to catch up on paperwork at the office. Not before a kiss goodbye and permission to hang around his apartment for as long as you liked after waking.
It was in that apartment that you spent your morning peacefully munching on some toast before work, until 2 men dressed in black broke down the door and rushed you. Before you could even think to react they were already on you, knocking you out on the counter top.
Darkness. Darkness on darkness on darkness. That's all I can see. All I can experience. I feel like I was pushed into a black hole. One that can sniffle, and whine like a child. There seems to be some shuffling, followed by a loud bang.
Slowly, very very very slowly, I force my eyes open. The first thing I can feel is that my arms are tied behind my back, and I seem to be moving. Not me, the ground was. It was pretty dark, but there seemed to be a light on above me. It kinda reminded me of the back of a van.
A VAN!
If I squint I can see the sliding door, the windows are covered in some kind of dark cloth. That was probably what caused the bang earlier, that door closing. In the furthest corner from me, I see two kids. Both boys, no older than 7. I must be closer to the front seats, placing the pair furthest away from the drivers as possible (smart --don’t be closer than you have to) . They are huddled together, and are staring wide eyed at me. I look a little closer. The biggest one, probably a few years older, has his hand over the younger one's mouth, as if to keep him from screaming. He's using his other hand to press the smaller one to his body, turning the small boy onto his side. The small boy is the one whimpering, looking right terrified. Neither seems to be bound at all. My heart sank. What did these poor boys do to deserve this? They were both dressed as if just coming from school, the only thing about their appearance that was off was their missing shoes.
I lick my lips hesitantly, as if unsure if my mouth was covered by something. It seemed whoever was responsible neglected to tie my mouth with anything. Good, it will make calming these kids that much easier. They need to be calm, because I don’t care how, or when, but they are not leaving this van with those men. All I know at this moment is that someone's kids are in front of me, someones pure and innocent children. Someone's loved ones are here. I may not be an FBI agent, hell I’m not even that fit in the first place-- but I will fight with everything I have to keep them safe. That's the one thought keeping me grounded, because everything else is too scary to accept otherwise. I’m not much, but I need to be enough for these kids and their parents.
Slowly, I nod in the boy's direction. They are looking at me again.
“Hello” I whisper, “what's your name?” The oldest boy just levels a glare at me, as if trying to see how dangerous I am. The little boy starts wiggling, as if trying to break free from the oldest boy's grasp. It's muffled at first, but I think he's trying to answer me. I just smile softly, the oldest is really being brave.
“I want you to know that everything's gonna be ok. I promise I’m gonna make it ok”.
The two boys share a look, and slowly the oldest lowers his hand. Finally, the youngest one fully looks at me. Ever so quietly, I hear him say “I’m’s Henry”.
Henry. What a cute name, one of my favorites for a boy. I remember telling Spencer how cute the name was once, and he mentioned how his godson--
.
.
.
Fuck.
Now that I look closely, I can see it a bit better. How much this kid looks like the one in the photo on Spencer's nightstand. It was taken on Halloween, and it was a picture I had looked at every time I came over. How could I resist, Spencer’s smile was so sweet, as he looked down on his little look alike. His godchild, dressed as him so he can better profile which monsters were good and which were bad.
Fuck indeed.
Spencer wouldn’t shut up about his coworkers, he saw them as family. There had been plenty of times where he would go on a rant, and somehow loop in what his coworkers reaction would be, or a story from a case long since won. Going to Spencer’s home for the first time was a live autobiography of his time at the BAU and his friends there. You would look at anything for the first time, and Spencer’s eyes would light up with a story he was eager to tell you. It was one of the things you loved about him, how excited he would be about seemingly everything and anything. You grew to love the BAU as well, if only because they took care of someone you care about when you're not around. Spencer's stories were so detailed you sometimes can even see yourself there in the bullpit, laughing with Prentiss or joking around with Morgan.
It was probably because of those stories that you found yourself suddenly confused. Spencer never maintained Henry having an older sibling. Plus, you didn’t think JJ had been with her husband long enough to have a son that old in the first place. Didn’t Spencer say JJ met her husband on a case, one he was on as well? The maths on that just didn’t check out. Yet these kids obviously we're not strangers, the oldest is too protective for that to be the case. Who then would have had a kid before Spencer joined-- oh wait I’m an idiot. Now the glare makes sense, it's one he probably inherited from his Dad if Spencer's stories were anything to go by.
I force myself to smile. They must have targeted us because of our relations to BAU members. You aren’t a profiler, but that feels like a good sign. They probably won’t kill you right away if they want you for something. You're just hoping this isn’t a revenge “I’m gonna cut you up slowly and make your loved ones watch” thing, and more of a “give us money then let us escape” thing.
“Hi Henry” I say softly, “You and Jack are gonna be ok. I’m not gonna let those bad men hurt any of us ok?”
Jack glare intensifies somehow, it's honestly impressive given his age and the current situation. “How do you know my name?” I try to smile reassuringly at the young man, pushing my body against the car to shift into a better sitting position.
“Because your Uncle Spence has told me all about you two, and I know him and all his friends are gonna get us out of here”.
The BAU headquarters was quiet. Maybe in retrospect, a bit too quiet. The team was discussing a possible new case when JJ excused herself to answer her phone. Suddenly the room exploded with noise. There had been 2 kidnappings in their area-- and the victims were Jack Hotchner and Henry LaMontagne. JJ was crying in Spencer's arms, while Hotch punched the wall. Everyone else was feeling a range of shock, fear, and determination to find whoever had the nerve to do this to their family.
Suddenly Garcia called, saying only “You guys are gonna wanna see this”.
That leads us to the present, with the entire BAU team crammed into Garcia’s office watching a livestream on her monitor. Someone had sent it to her a few minutes back, and it seemed to be a live feed of Jack and Henry. The group couldn’t see much, but only that the two boys were holding each other and looking at something off screen.
“Garcia”, Hotch said, “Can you track this feed?” Garcia only nodded in response, her other monitors alight with algorithms and programs. Nobody breathed for the next few minutes, everyone paralyzed by the feed. The only sounds that filled the room were the clicking of keys and JJ’s sniffles. They watched in silence as Henry seemed to start wiggling in Jack’s arms, still staring at something off screen.
“What the hell are they looking at?” Morgan muttered to himself, obviously nervous about the possibilities.
“I can’t be the only one worried it's the unsub, right?” Prentiss finally said. JJ physically shuddered at the thought.
Suddenly, Jack stood up. With a look of determination, he walked over to the unseen corner and disappeared from frame. Hotch repeditaly cursed under his breath.
“I think I can find the sound for the livestream,” Garcia said after a few moments. She looked behind her at the petrified face of JJ, “Are you ok hearing this?”
“Put it on” Hotch demanded. It was only a few minutes before the group could hear the sniffles of a small child, alongside the sounds of bodies shifting on the floor. The group shared a look, there was no doubt someone was off screen with their boys. Suddenly a woman's voice came through,
“Can you reach it better now?” The only reply was a few boyish grunts, presumably from Jack.
“A female unsub?” Rossi questioned, “What chick fits this kind of serial kidnapping case? This doesn’t fit the profile we have at all”.
Prentiss had a contemplative look on her face, “Maybe she's another victim? Perhaps she was in the way or simply saw too much?”
Reid shook his head, “That doesn’t fit the profile either. They were both grabbed in public, in front of plenty of witnesses. I mean that's how we knew so quickly that something had happened in the first place”. Eyes snapped back to the tape when a loud snapping sound was heard, followed by a small “woo-hoo”. Jack slowly moves back into frame, sitting down next to a fascinated Henry.
“Remember you promised” Jack said, again staring into the unseen corner. His voice had started to waiver, and even Henry could tell he was tearing up from the stress. The team heard a hum of acknowledgement from the unseen corner. Prentiss briefly put a hand on Hotch’s arm, seeing his eyes harden in worry.
“Where do you want me to start?” The voice asked. Henry's whole face lit up, a smile broke onto his face.
“Does Uncle Spence have’a lab? Like Bill?”
That question leaves the team stunned, and Reid chokes on his coffee.
“Is the Unsub pretending to work for us? So that the kids won’t run away?” JJ questioned, sharing a look with Hotch. Surprisingly its Rossi who answers, saying
“Doubtful. Don’t both of you have code words for your kids?” The two nodded, it was FBI procedure after all. Well maybe not FBI procedure, but after Hayley, it at least became a Hotch and JJ procedure.
The voice laughed, “Bill? Whos that?” Henry recoiled with horror, bringing his small hands to his face. Suddenly, Henry stands up and says “Bill Bill Bill!” while throwing his body around in what was supposed to be a dance. Jack pulls Henry down into a sitting position quickly when Henry starts to trip over his own feet.
The team is incredibly confused, all watching the screen in mild amusement despite the gravity of the situation. The profile may be a mess but at least the boys are ok enough to make some small talk. That was a good sign.
“He means Bill Nye the science guy” Jack mumbled. The women released a hearty laugh at that, the team could hear slapping what sounded like metal with what they could assume was her hand.
“No baby cakes, Uncle Spence does not have a lab. At least, that I know of”. Henry's face fell, so the voice quickly amended, “But, I’m sure that if you showed him, he would want one really bad. Hey how about this-- when we get out of here: you, me, Jack, Uncle Spence and all his friends can watch Bill Nye together. We can even design a lab for him ourselves yeah?”
JJ’s eyes water as she sees her son perk up at the idea, watching him rattle off lab equipment that would be required for Uncle Spences “Official Doctor Business” (she doesn’t know how a plasma ball will help Reid profile, but she would gladly get one for him if it made her boy so happy).
“I think we can all say that this lady isn’t our unsub” Morgan said, “She's not very threatening, and she's clearly trying to keep the boys calm rather than hurt em”.
“This changes the whole profile,” Hotch added “We aren’t just looking at a serial kidnapping, but also an abduction of a young woman. The variety of subjects and timing of the kidnappings is highly unusual.”
“It is if you are looking at this from the sexual sadist point of view” Rossi murmured, “I think we should circle back to my original idea, and say these are not sexually motivated but rather by revenge”.
Reid sucked in a large breath all of a sudden, face completely blank in shock. Morgan grabs his shoulder, “What’s going on boy genius?” As if spooked, Reid fumbles for his phone and dials a number. His hands are shaking as the phone rings, nobody picks up.
He dials again--“no no no no no no no no no n-”
Reid is cut off by Jack's tiny voice, “Miss? Can I ask you a question?”
“With such good manors? Of course buddy”
“If you and Mr. Reid are in love, does that make you a Paladin like him?”
The team looks at Reid, who is staring at his phone. He clearly wasn’t listening, too busy panicking. The number he called went dead for the 5th time. Only Hotch leans over the back of Garcia's chair, “That's our code word, he's asking if she's safe”.
“I…no. Probably not. If he's a Paladin, I’m a dusty librarian who everyone thinks is a witch”.
The number Reid dialed went dead for the 6th time.
Henry chuckles, while Jack looks thoughtfully in her direction. “If I were to make you a Paladin, would you give me a hug like papa?” Hotch’s heart breaks, his son is being so brave.
“You don’t have to make me anything sweet pea, I don’t mind. Is it ok if I scoot over there?” The boys nod. The BAU team hears joints pop as someone rises off the floor. Leaning against the wall, a woman comes into frame. She's hunched over, unable to stand to her full height and needing the wall for support. She sits herself with a bit of space between her and the boys, waiting for them to make the first move. She's barely seated before Jack jumps into her lap, clinging to her for support. The team can see his shoulders shaking as the woman puts careful arms around him, murmuring soothing words and rocking back and forth.
“I GOT IT!” Garcia squealed. Amongst her programs, a map popped on screen. On it, a moving red dot. “That's them, they seem to be driving down the interstate southbound”.
At that, Hotch switched from dad to boss mode. By the time he was out the door, he was already mobilizing a task force to track and pull over what they assumed to be a van with covered windows. JJ was close behind him, grabbing her FBI vest. Morgan hesitated at the door, watching how Spencer’s eyes fixated on the women in the livestream.
“Reid”, Morgan said softly. There was no response. Morgan crossed the room, placing himself between Reid and the screen. He only continued when Reid finally met his eyes, “Let's go find your librarian”