Unbroken Souls (Spencer Reid x Reader POV)

Chapter 29

"Charlotte, wait" Spencer calls after me as I pick up speed, almost starting to run into my office. My head was spinning, I felt like I couldn't breathe, and I could already feel the hot tears spilling from my eyes and rolling down my cheeks. Bursting through the door of my office before letting out a sob, I hear Spencer's footsteps behind me, and I hear him click my office door closed before he hugs me from behind, holding me tightly and kissing my head. I could tell that I was at the beginning of a panic attack as my breathing got quicker and my vision got blurrier as my head spun faster.

"Char, baby, sit with me" he said, slowly guiding me to the couch in my office, sitting next to me and still holding me tight, he started squeezing my hand. "You're having a panic attack, everything is okay, I'm here. Breathe with me" his voice was calming despite the fact I could feel the anxious tension in his body. I don't know how long he sat there doing deep breathing with me and letting me cry, but eventually, I came back into reality and looked up into his hazel eyes. Concern and sadness were written all over his face, but his eyes were glistening with love.

"I- I'm sorry" I managed to get out, and he quickly told me the same thing I said to him back on that first case we worked together.

"Please don't apologize for being human. I'm here. I'm right here" he kissed my forehead. Truthfully, the feeling of Spencer holding me tightly and rocking me back and forth was so calming and protecting, and I felt like I could never be hurt as long as I was in his arms. After a while, I shifted in his arms and he loosened his grip, allowing me to turn and face him while holding both his hands.

"Spence... I have to work this case. I have to do this for her" I said, averting looking in his eyes while I said this; afraid he would push back and say I had lost my mind. Instead, he raised my hand to his lips, leaving a soft kiss on my hand before saying "I know. And I'm going to be by your side every second of the way. This case is to seek the justice you and your sister never got".

Once I looked a little more presentable, Spencer and I walked back into the BAU offices, grabbed our go bags and found Hotch.

"Sir, I am deeply sorry for leaving the briefing earlier. I assure you that I will work this case with all I have" I said firmly to Aaron, praying he wouldn't drop me from the case.

"Hillburg, I understand this case would be hard for you. If you really feel you are able to work the case, then I would be a fool to not use your expertise" Hotch replied as he grabbed his go bag. "Reid, I've sent the others out to the scene and to the medical examiner's office. Can you and Hillburg go talk to the family? With the scene being an hour away I would prefer we work from a police station closer to. Take an SUV and meet us back at the station after the interview". Reid nodded in agreement and grabbed a set of keys, all three of us turning to walk out of the office towards the elevator. Once we got in the SUV, Spencer put his hand on my thigh and looked at me, his eyes filled with anxiety despite his efforts to put on a brave face.

"It's okay Spence. I'm okay. I love you" I said softly, placing my hand over his.

"I love you, too" he said, quickly giving me a peck on the cheek before driving off.

We had gotten back to the station after interviewing the family, and Spencer was working on reading through the victims' journals to try and find any moments that the unsub could have also recognized as an opportunity for abduction. I sat at the table in the same room, trying to piece together the case notes from the interview, but all I could think about was my sister.

"Charlotte?" I must have been rather dissociated because Spencer only ever calls me by my full name when I'm deep in thought.

"I'm so sorry, were you talking to me?" I looked over to see him fully turning his body to face mine, fiddling with the Sharpie in his hand.

"I was just running down the few possible areas where the victim and unsub may have crossed paths, but I'm thinking that there's something you're not telling me..." he trailed off as he sat in the chair next to me, taking my hand in his.

"There are just too many similarities to my sister's case. Look, even the two known victims— Spence—" I said, my voice breaking; "they look like her" I bit the inside of my cheeks to keep from crying, my eyes stinging with tears I was blinking back.

"Do you think the unsub was the one who killed your sister?" He asked me quietly, looking into my eyes.

"I don't know... they never found the guy. There are just too many similarities, I can't help but wonder— but it's been years–" I trailed off and Spencer squeezed my hand. We were interrupted by Rossi and Prentiss walking into the room, coming to report back on the intel they gathered.. with their appearance, Spencer dropped my hand.

It had been a while and the whole team was back and building the profile now. Spencer had popped out of the room for a while and returned, tapping me on the shoulder to bring me to the hallway.

"It's up to you if you want to look at this or not, but I had Garcia pull your sister's case and run a search for any similar cases. Char... I'm so sorry but we—" he trailed off slightly and I already knew exactly what he was going to say.

"Will it help the profile?" I asked, tears starting to sting my eyes again.

"Yes. And the inclusion of her file means we get some justice for her" he said softly as he brushed my hair behind my ear.

"Will you help me? I want to tell her story... but I don't know if I–"

"Of course, I can baby. Let's do this together" he cut me off and guided me back into the room, holding the file that dictated the exact moment my life shattered. The team turned their attention to Reid and I at the front of the room, and an eerie hush fell over them.

"We have something else we need to consider in the profile" Spencer said, and I cleared my throat trying to swallow the lump that was keeping me from talking.

"When I was 16, my sister, Jasmine Hillburg aged 19, was discovered in a ditch. She had been abducted, beaten, stabbed, and then discarded. The two victims we were called out here for... these cases... they all—" I trailed off as my voice broke, Spencer placed a hand on the small of my back as he took over for me.

"I believe that Jasmine was this unsub's first victim, and the inclusion of her case in this investigation is vital. The M/O, similarities, and signature are all the same. Garcia is currently running a nationwide search for other cases matching these three" Spencer said as he opened the file and slid the folder to the center of the table.

JJ and Prentiss looked up to meet my eye-line, both with sad and pitiful looks on their faces.

"Charlotte, I'm so sorry. I had no idea—" Prentiss said as JJ came over and hugged me. Hotch cleared his throat and stood up.

"We need to deliver the profile. And today we bring justice to the Hillburg family" he said as the team scrambled to their whiteboards.

It had been two hours and Hotch had decided I would be best to stay in the office and work on phone interviews with the most recent victims' families and friends. Garcia pushed to have me join her in her little tech lair, and Reid tried to convince Hotchner that he needed to stay with me and use the information I gather in the profiles. Hotch eventually gave into Spencer and he watched me like a hawk through the office window as he added to the profile. Morgan and Rossi had gone to the most recent dump site, JJ went to the medical examiner's office, and Hotch and Prentiss bounced between a few different areas. I was writing up some quick summaries from one of the victim's mothers when the sound of Reid's phone pulled my attention to him. I walked to the doorway to hear better, cradling my water glass in my hand. By the way he was fidgeting with his hands, I could tell the news wasn't good. He hung up the phone and turned to look at me, his face had distress written all over it. He tried to find the words but failed to do so, and my heart sank.