To Protect and Serve *Criminal Minds*

VIII

"I have to go." he moved forward, before Morgan moved him back.

"Whoa, pretty boy, slow down." he said.

"Look, Morgan, I really need to go. I'm going to miss my flight to Vegas-"

"I'll take you." Morgan offered. "You'd get there quicker." Reid glanced at his watch.

"Fine, I don't have time to argue. I need to get there before my plane leaves."

"You know that flights are behind scheduele, right?" Morgan said as Reid shut and locked the door behind them.

"Just in case, I like to get there early." Reid said. "Lets go." the two men went down the stairs, Spencer hurrying along. The two made it outside, climbing into Morgan's SUV.

"So, Pretty boy, wanna tell me why you left the party so early? You and Little Red were getting pretty steamy!" Morgan raised his eyebrows, but Spencer stayed silent. Morgan glanced at him as he pulled onto the road.

"Kid?" Spencer but his lip.

"Morgan, if I were to tell you, you would have to take it to your grave unless I say otherwise." Morgan shot his friend a concerned look.

"'Course you can. You know that." it was silent again as Reid paused his thoughts.

"Pre- or Penny, as you know her, isn't who you -any of you- think she is. She isn't Penny Rawlings, college student." Morgan screwed up his face in disbelief.

"What?"

"You heard me." Spencer said seriously.

"Okay, then who is she?" They stopped at a traffic jam, and Spencer looking Morgan in the eye.

"That's just the thing. I don't know." If Morgan had been in disbelief before, it was worse now.

"You don't know?" He said. "Man, what are you-"

"I have to find out who she is in order to help her." Spencer explained. "She's a brilliant actress." Morgan cursed.

"So that whole thing at the party was a hoax?"

"She was the one who thought of it. I had no idea what she was planning." He replied.

"How were you two communicating?" Morgan asked.

"Morse code. We were tapping it out on each other's waists."

"So that's why your fingers we constantly tapping. I wondered."

"Figures. We are profilers, after all." he said.

"You said Penny wasn't her name, right?"

"Most of her story was her lying through her teeth." hr said, his lips tilting upward.

"You were good at lying." Morgan complimented.

"She's better." Reid replied, remembering the messages that they had shared on their sides. "I know her as Pre. She came to me privately last week."

"What do you know for sure about her?"

"Her first named should start with the letters PRE. She's a natural redhead, her eyes are a natural color."

"They are? Damn."

"Continuing, she was clearly raised in the upper pacific region of the United States or the lower part of Canada. She's either in education or in law enforcement, and was raised strictly. Both of her parents are dead, her dad died of cancer last year. Her younger sister lives in Atlantic city, and apparently we saved her life from an unsub and I became her hero. I also believe that Pre is a genius, but clearly never honed her abilities."