Spencer pulled on the straps of your bulletproof vest a bit tighter, his brows pinched and his gaze hard. You reached up and stroked the lines on his forehead away, causing him to look at you. Disregarding the other officers around the safe house about to depart for the extraction point, you let your hand fall to his shoulder, keep in there as you spoke. 

"What are you thinking?"

Spencer didn't drop his hands from the straps. "I can't help but worry that even having you around the area will trigger something inside you. Sometimes, PTSD doesn't show it's ugly head until a major, or in some cases, minor trigger spills it over. As unfortunate as it is that I know the signs of PTSD, I am not exactly sure how I will react seeing you be the one affected by it."

Your heart lurched at his soft words and worried thoughts. But just as you had resolved to set your feeling aside for Danielle in the tub the night before, it was time he did the same with you. "Spener, I want to say I will be fine but even I don't know that. But what I do know is that Danielle is scared out of her mind and in order for us to do the best we can for her we need to set our own emotions aside and focus on how to get her home safely."

Spencer's gaze softened and a corner of his lips turned up in a lazy smile. "you would fit right into the BAU."

You nearly snorted. "I don't know about that..."

Before Spencer had a chance to answer, a voice called on one of the walkie-talkies. It was that really peppy girl again. 

"Alrighty, backup crew. Hotch and the others are at the warehouse. They have all the escape routes blocked off both in the building and out on the roads."

Spencer picked up the walkie and talked back. "Did they find their location yet?"

"Sure did,"

Your eyes widened slightly and subconsciously took a step closer to Spencer, who moved the walkie between the two of you. He pressed the button but it was you who asked. 

"Where? Is she alright? Is she hurt?"

"Oh man, you sound so much better. But just hold on to your pigtails, sweetums, we only have heat signatures on them. As of right now, the drone has them pegged on the third floor in a back storage room with one way in and one way out."

You nodded, but your breathing seemed to stop. Spencer looked at you as you gazed at nothing, your mind reeling. Garcia's voice came back almost as if she knew what was going on.

"Take a deep breath, sugar, we will get her out of there all safe and sound. Promise. we have done this loads of times, sadly, so we know what we are doing. Give her a squeeze for me Spencer. Or a pat, whatever she prefers. Your glam girl it out unless I have more info. Peace."

Spencer lowered the walkie and turned to you. "Are you sure about this?"

Slowly, you brought your eyes back up to him, nodding the barest bit. Spencer afforded you a small smile, his arm reaching up and around you to gently pull you to his side. His hand patted your shoulder as you leaned into him. 

"Take another deep breath."

You did, closing your eyes, seeing Danielle's sweet face smiling at you. Safe. And unharmed. With one more shuttering breath you opened your eyes and nodded, stepping away from Spencer's half embrace, albeit reluctantly. 

Spencer gave the men around you a nod then opened one of the doors to the large black car that would take you to the warehouse. "I'll be up front. Don't hesitate to say anything if you have any questions or concerns."

You wordlessly go into the vehicle, not missing Spencer's hand in yours as he helped you in. You sat down and looked at him,  your heart starting to pound. "How long until we are there?"

"An hour or so. So maybe try getting some rest."

He gave you a small smile then shut the door. You watched through the tinted windows as he talked to some of the other officers guarding the safe house. You let yourself wonder, for a moment, how the other girls were doing. If they too had a special agent watching over them, making sure they felt safe and cared for.

Soon Spencer, a driver, and one more officer joined you in the car. You didn't say anything as the car started and the men engaged in quiet conversation about plans and whatnot. You closed your eyes and let out a shaky breath. Then, grateful Spencer was in the passenger seat, you leaned forward to rest your forehead against the back of his chair. You then slowly reached out and around the left to where his arm was on the armrest and just gently placed your hand on his arm, feeling him tense up slightly. But then, just as quickly, he relaxed. You nearly smiled when you then felt his other hand cover yours, his fingers warm against your cold ones. You stayed like that until sleep quickly took over.

~~~~~

Spencer saw the chaos before Penelope's voice filled his ear as the car pulled up to the warehouse. The other officers got out to assist but Spencer stayed in the car watching as various officers and some of the BAU members pointed to where they wanted the new men.

"The unsub just now moved. One more level higher. He now not only has a gun but a large pipe too. I think the poor girl has fallen asleep. She's been up for over a day now, at least. How's our princess?"

Spencer looked down at your hand clasped on his arm. "Thank you for not telling her about the gun. She's resting right now. I don't want to wake her."

"Awwww. Bless. She'd kill you if you didn't wake her for this. I can only imagine how worried she is."

Spencer nodded though he knew the techy couldn't see him. "Yeah. But she's made of stronger stuff. Keep me updated on where the Unsub is and if anything changes with the victim."

"Roger Roger."

Spencer looked down at your hand again, following your arm back to you. You were facing him, your mouth slightly agape, your hair in your face moving gently with each breath you too. Spencer couldn't help but smile as he reached over to brush the hair from your face, his fingers lingering on your cheek. You stirred, but only just. 

"Hey," he whispered, drawing your blinking (e/c) eyes to him, "we are here."

In an instant you were up, your hand pulled from his arm as you looked around to get your bearings. Again, Spencer couldn't help but smile. You had a nice outline of the back of the chair on your reddened cheek. Your hair wasn't wild but it was a bit messed. Your eyes were still a bit tired as you tried to blink the sleep away. 

"How did you sleep?" He asked as your gaze landed on him. 

You yawned, stretched a bit and nodded. "Well enough. Are we really here?"

Spencer nodded. He watched as you leaned against the window, gazing up at the tall warehouse building. 

"She's in there," you whispered, your breath fogging the window for a moment.

Spencer turned in his seat and looked up at the building too, nodding. "We know right where and we are going to bring her to you." He turned back to you. "I promise."

You nodded looking down at your hands clasped in your lap, your fingers picking at a fraying edge of your cast. "Can I at least know what's going on while you are in there?" You looked up, your eyes in earnest. "I promise to stay here but I don't like not knowing."

Spencer chewed the inside of his cheek before he nodded. "You are to stay absolutely quiet unless asked a question. I don't want you distracting anyone else on the line." He reached into his ear and pulled out his earpiece, giving it to you. "They won't know you have it and I'm sure they would object me giving this to you but as long as you stay here and stay quiet, then that should be fine."

You took the earpiece and nodded, tucking in your own ear. "Are you going in?"

Spencer nodded. Then he opened his door, got out, went to your door, and opened it. "I will come right back."

He knew you would worry. He knew your anxiety about trusting a man then seeing him leave would mess with your emotions. But he had a duty and he wanted to make sure, personally, that Danielle was alright and got to you safely. As much as he wanted to collect you in his arms and never let you go and only make you smile and not worry for the rest of your life, he had to leave you. 

Reaching out, Spencer took your hands and helped you out of the car. You blinked at the brightness of the morning light but kept your hands in his. The sound of everyone talking and rushing about made you slightly nervous. You looked up at Spencer and nodded. 

"I'll wait right here."

"I'll make sure someone stays here with you." Spencer then reached up and touched the earpiece, turning it on. "Penelope is on this end as well."

You nodded again, walking with him to the front of the car where more of the officers were huddled together under a tent. Spencer nodded to Alvez and Hotch, Emily and JJ being over with another team, Rossi off in the distance on the phone. Spencer then turned to you again, slowly taking steps back as he spoke to you. 

"I'll be right back. You'll be safe."

You nodded and Spencer gave you a small smile. Then he turned, heading to the tent to see where he was being sent. 

  "Just...Spencer?"  

You called out, making him pause and turn to look at you again.

"Hmm?"

He watched as you fidgeted with your cast again. "Please...please be careful. Don't do anything...stupid."

Spencer let a corner of his mouth turn up into a bashful smile as he nodded. "I'll try not to."

~~~~~~

You watched him turn and head to the others, a few of them you recognized as the group of people who came in to question you a few days ago. You leaned back on the car and followed your arm as best as one could with a cast. Your shoulder still ached from being dislocated but it was nothing compared to the sudden fear you felt in your heart. Looking up at the building you could hardly breathe. 

He was in there. Though you had spent years with him and knew how he worked, he still scared the living daylights out of you. You weren't sure if there was any way you could be rid of the dark memories that plagued your mind, but you did know that having a certain BAU member around helped you with that. 

You wondered what it would be like to see the Unsub again, to look into his face knowing you were free of his grasp and that you had won. That he wouldn't hurt anyone ever again. A part of you really wanted to march up there and give him what he deserved. 

But another part of you grew nauseous at the mere thought of him. You thought back to the night you and Spencer laid in the tub. He had said how he never wanted you so see him and him you. Ever. And at that moment your chest grew warm and you felt a sense of security not unlike the first time you were with him when he helped you at the hospital. you trusted Spencer, fully, so therefore you trusted his judgment call on seeing the Unsub. You trusted Spencer to be the one to deal the blow that will ring as justice to what was done to you and your friends. 

And to Danielle. 

"We are coming for you, Danielle. Just hold on," you whispered as you gazed up at the building. 

Suddenly there was a whirl of activity. Your earpiece went off and the officers and BAU members started rushing about, no doubt getting into positions that matched the calls given by the lady in your ear.

"He's moved again. But this time he left the girl. She isn't moving and is on the second floor. he is armed but also very disoriented. He's either not sure where he is or he's drunk."

Another voice chimed in, she sounded like the blonde, JJ. "Let's hope both, they are easier to take down. Relatively speaking."

Spencer's voice joined in just as you looked up to see him walking with a group of men to one of the side doors of the building. He caught your eye and gave you the barest of smiles before disappearing into the brick prison that held your friend.

"He is most likely sleep deprived and is just as delirious as he is hallucinating. Given his drinking history, he's also going through a bit of a withdrawal. We will have to tread with caution, those like him in this state would do anything for relief from what he is probably experiencing as the most painful and overwhelming headaches of headaches."

You closed your eyes and let Spencer's voice fill you with courage. He knew what he was facing. He knew what to do. He was going to be alright. Besides, you liked hearing him talk, it was a nice change from being yelled at.

What happened next was a series of instructions to different teams to do what. The dark haired lady you remembered from before, Emily, came up to you with a map of the building. She smiled kindly and set it on the hood of the car you were leaning against. 

"I thought you might like to see a visual representation of what we are hearing."

You looked at her for a moment only being able to nod. Emily placed two sheets down, one of the third floor where Danielle was, her figure represented by a starburst. Emily shrugged. 

"JJ has kids. It was in her pocket from who knows when."

Then she placed the fourth floor down, various pebbles and rocks representing each group. Without needing to ask, she showed you which was Spencer's. Pointing down at the group, she moved a collection of eight pebbles, two of them larger than the rest. They entered the fourth floor from a staircase farthest from where a gum wrapper laid by a large window on the other side of the fourth floor.

You heard orders being given and each time a different group moved. Two groups were on the third floor, one led by Rossi, the other by Alvez. You weren't sure why they didn't just go for Danielle, she was right there, unguarded and frightened. But that question was quickly answered by a gruff voice entering your head. 

"We can't go any closer. There are explosives."

That made everyone freeze. It took several moments before people started moving again. Your hands were balled into white-knuckled fists and your jaw was clenched. Emily's hand on yours didn't do much for relieving your anger and frustration. 

"Ah, so that's why he left her," Garcia interjected, her voice a shaky calm as she thought on the go. "And why I can't see them. They must be electricity based and have to be tripped to ignite. Any timers anywhere?"

"None," Alvez answered. "The only way we can get to her is if we tell her to move as far away as she can and let us trip a few of them. They aren't big ones, they will shake the place a bit but not kill us."

Your head shot up and your eyes grew wide. Tell her? They can't tell her anything, she's deaf. She can't hear. She won't be able to hear their warning.

"Is there some other way you can get past the explosives?" Came Spencer's voice, nearly calming you completely, but you could sense the slight worry in his voice. He remembered Danielle's hearing or lack thereof.

"No can do, Reid,"  Rossi's voice returned. "There is only one way in and one way out and he has the place decked out. It's like he had been waiting for this moment to happen."

Alvez followed up close behind. "We have to do this now or never. With the Unsub on another floor, I don't think he has the trigger. That leaves it up to us to figure this out."

You opened your mouth to tell them about Danielle but the sound of an explosion in your earpiece as well as from where you were made your words die on your lips. You and Emily looked to the building, watching as dust settled and glass from a few shattered windows made the littered the now shiny ground. 

"Is everyone alright?" A frantic Garcia appeared in your ear.

Rossi spoke up with a bit of a cough."Yeah, we're good."

"What happened? " Spencer asked. 

"I tossed a rock and it hit two of them at the same time. Sorry about that. Sounded worst than it really was. Hardly left a mark on the ground." Alvez answered. 

You closed your eyes and shook your head. Danielle would have only felt the ground shake. You were sure she was smart enough to know what an explosive looked like and you were sure she was smart enough to know what it would feel like if one went off. So the only thing you could think of was if you were deaf and the ground suddenly started shaking while your master was gone, you were safe to assume that they had started up and it will end with you going out with them.

"Get ready for a few more, I think I can clear a path with no more than ten more going off."  Alvez calculated, his haggard breath coming over the line as you imagined he was planning what to do next.

You bit your cheek and nearly sobbed. But you held it in, took a few deep breaths then let your hands relax. 

"Wait," you called out to the group. Emily looked at you with a bit of shock, her eyes full of question. You shook your head and closed your eyes again, picturing the room and where the explosives might be placed in relation to Danielle. "I need you all to wait."

"We don't really have that kind of time Miss (L/n))-"

"Go on (Y/n)," Spencer cut off Alvez, making your heart feel a bit lighter at the sound of his voice.

You swallowed then opened your eyes, staring at the starburst. "She is deaf, I am sure all of you know that. Therefore she also cannot cry out. But also given what she has been through as well as being a smart kid, she is probably just now thinking she might die as more go off." You reached over and took a pencil from Emily's hand and drew a small diagram of where the explosives were placed as Alvez had described them. "If I was told right, there should be a bathroom on that level, correct?"

"Correct." Came the reply of three people, collectively.

"Bathrooms have mirrors. Break one and use it to talk to her, if she is even awake."

"She's definitely awake, dear," Garcia entered again, her voice gentle, "She shifted but didn't move anywhere. She is still in her spot on the east wall."

You closed your eyes and let out a breath. Why didn't she move? You opened your eyes and looked at the floor plan again, twisting the pencil in your fingers. Suddenly your heart dropped and your eyes began to water. With a shaky hand, you started to draw a line from that cluster of explosives to the starburst, circling the red candy several times. 

"She-she..."

You started to speak, your voice a hoarse whisper, but another voice joined you on the other end of the line, his calculating tone full of realization you weren't sure everyone else had come to yet.

"She is tied up with explosives."

"She is tied up with explosives."

Part 4...? Maaaaaaaaaaybe ;)

I would apologize for my absence but I seriously am so tired of sounding like a whining crybaby that i'm gonna stop and just say; I'll be able to post when I can. Life sucks, especially when you find out you might be losing your childhood home. Therefore, I have been working my butt end off so I can make sure my parent's don't have to worry about me on my end too. oof. sorry. Life is hard, yes, but writing for you guys clears my head. Thanks for sticking around. 

Now if you want to- you don't have to, though I would greatly appreciate it and will use it for good things like groceries and gas- I have a Kofi link in my bio if you so wish to help me out. However, hearing your sweet kind words help me too ;) Love you all! 

Hopefully, I'll see you again soon ;)