Little Boy Blue (Criminal Minds Fanfiction)

Chapter Three: The Sanatorium

When the plane lands in Las Vegas, Nevada, the BAU team descends the plank from the jet. Hotch says, "Alright, Prentiss, Gideon and I will go down to the police station to see how much information they have so far, J.J. and Morgan head to the Sanatorium. We'll need alot of ground to cover there since the place is big."

"What should I do?" Reid pipes up.

"Um," Hotch starts unsurely when Morgan interrupts, "You can come with us, if that's cool, Hotch."

Hotch nods and the team drive away to their assigned places.

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When Hotch, Gideon, and Prentiss arrive at the police department, they immediately know they have their work cut out for them.

Police, detectives, and other various law enforcement workers rush about in a very disorganized fashion. Papers flutter off desks and people crashing into each other because they're just not paying attention.

"Oh, this'll be fun..." Prentiss mutters.

The three FBI agents head into the police chief's office. A stout man wearing a white collared shirt that is much too small for him. The man looks up as Gideon knocks on the door. "Yes?"

"This is SSA Emily Prentiss, Senior Supervisory Agent Jason Gideon, and I'm Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner from the BAU," Hotch explains. "How much information do you have on the missing person case for Diana Reid?"

"I'm Police Chief Austin Brown if you're wondering..." the stout man mutters. "Oh, yeah, Diana. We just were made aware of her going missing. Not much so far."

"Well, what do you have?" Gideon persists.

"Uh, we know that she's gone?"

"Oh, God."

*********************************************************

The scene at Bennington Sanatorium isn't much different from the police department: it's disorganized and people look flustered.

"Hi," Reid says, rushing to the front desk of the sanatorium. "Are you Angela?"

The blonde young woman at the front desk looks up from computer. "Yes, I'm Angela!"

"Hi," Reid repeats, "I'm Spencer Reid."

"Oh," Angela's face falls, "I'm sorry about your mom. You look just like your mom described you! She loved to talk about you! She just GUSHED about you!" Angela did a quick once-over of Reid's thin frame. "She always did say you were quote, 'Much too skinny!'"

Reid smiles faintly. "That sounds like Mom. So, can we see her room?"

Morgan clears his throat. Reid turns around. "Oh, right! This is SSA Derek Morgan and Media Liaison Jennifer Jareau from the BAU. Now, can we go?"

Angela nods. "Of course."

Angela heads the way to Diana's room. They finally come to the room and step into the crime scene.

It looks just like a normal room, as if an abduction hadn't taken place here. How much Reid wishes that's so.

Scanning the room, NOTHING is out of place. Diana's bed is made neatly with a stuffed giraffe (her favorite animal) Reid had gotten her for her birthday sitting on the bed. Reid picks up the giraffe with a gloved hand and his lip trembles. He takes a deep breath. JUST TREAT THIS LIKE IT'S A NORMAL CASE, he thinks.

"So, any prints?" Reid asks.

"No, none, the cop guys said," a young man with brown hair in a neat suit says in the room.

"Who are you?" J.J. asks.

"I run the hospital," the man says.

The trio scan the room from top to bottom. The window hasn't been forced open and the door wasn't the way the assailant had exited.

Reid looks around and even though it pains him incredibly to do so, Reid puts himself in the abductor's shoes. How would he get of here if he's going to get himself and another person out of this small room?

Wait, how did he get here in the beginning? Not the window or the door; then how?

With an empty, sick, icy feeling forming in his belly, Reid realizes how the abductor got in.

"They work here!" Reid blurts out.

"I can assure you that no one that works here would abduct a patient," the man with the brown hair says.

"Excuse me, Mr...."

"Dan Flint."

"Mr. Flint," Reid continues, "I'm sorry but that's the only explanation for this."

"That would make sense since there's no other possible way to get in," J.J. agrees.

"I can assure you-"

"Look, I don't care what you think you can assure me, I know how to do my job and I KNOW that someone on your staff has done this, so getting your staff list would be GREATLY appreciated, Mr. Flint," Reid says shortly and a bit snottily, but this man is REALLY starting to get on his nerves.

"Um, alright," Dan mumbles and awkwardly exits the room.

"Uh, hey, Reid," Morgan says, surprised at his normally kind friend's demeanor, "do you mind trying to be a little nicer to Flint? We'll be working with him so-"

"What? Treat him with courtesy even though I have probably twice his I.Q.?" Reid says rather than asks.

"WHAT did you just say?" Morgan demands.

Then Reid realizes what he just said.

"Oh my God, I don't know why I said that," Reid says, sitting down in one of two plastic chairs placed in the room, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples.

"I do," J.J. says. "You're stressed and I can see why. I would be, too."

J.J. sits down by Reid and takes Reid's hand in hers. "Reid, look at me."

Reid opens his big, brown eyes and looks into J.J.'s own blue ones. "What?"

"We ARE going to find her, okay?" J.J. says. "Alright?"

"How do you know?" Reid retorts. "I know how these things work. Some people get found in time, while others..."

"That's not going to happen," Morgan interjects. "All we can try to do to figure out what these freak's clues mean."

"Right," Reid nods. "Okay, so the first 'clue' or whatever we want to call it talked about a place with cinnamon smells and people scurrying."

"Since this guy has made it personal, it's probably somewhere you've been before," J.J. observes.

Reid thinks and suddenly it comes to him.

"I know where we have to go."