FREAKING OUT ² ➢ spencer reid

XXIX

"We just arrived at Tammy's," Reid's tone was short and sweet. As we made our way up the driveway he grabbed my hand, flashing me a warm smile as kissed the back of it and smiled. As cute as it was I just rolled my eyes, holding back a smile as I retracted my hand and shook my head.

When we got to the door I gave it a couple of knocks, rapping my knuckles against the white surface before taking a step back and pocketing my hands.

"What do you mean she's already at the station?" He furrowed his brow as he craned his neck towards the window near the door. After a couple of seconds of inspection he looked over at me and licked his lips. "Okay, we'll be there soon." When he hung up the phone he tightened his grip on my hand before pulling me back towards the SUV.

"What's happening?" I glanced over at the house before looking back at Reid who led us towards the passenger's side of the vehicle.

"Tammy's at the station," he responded, "she just confessed."

"Confessed?" I raised my brow, watching as he opened the door and helped me inside. Like usual, he closed it before I could say another word and hopped in on the other side, letting out a frustrated sigh as threw on his seatbelt. "What do you mean confessed?"

He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head in disbelief. While both of us had a hunch that Tammy was a potential unsub neither of us assumed it would be this easy. Cases like this didn't just end and as nice as it would to think like that, we definitely knew otherwise.

I blinked in surprised and buckled up too, watching as Reid started the vehicle and glanced at his mirrors. "Who'd you talk to?"

"Morgan," he responded. Slowly, he pulled out of the driveway and onto the road. "They think she's having a psychotic break."

"Do they think she killed him?"

"It's hard to tell," he sighed.

I rested my head on the back of the chair and took a deep breath. Based on the profile, it seemed odd that our unsub would go to such great lengths to kill a person only to just confess a day later. Power killers weren't the type to just stand down; they wanted total control, which was something they'd be giving up if they turned themselves in.

"Given the fact that she's a recovering alcoholic it'd make sense if she had substance abuse problems as well. Statistically the two often go hand in hand and if she's having a psychotic break the drugs might be the reason," Reid added.

"You think she got high and killed him?" I asked.

"It's possible. Stimulating drugs such as meth and cocaine often cause the user to become aggressive and belligerent. Not to mention show signs of paranoia."

"Even if she did feel threatened by him there's no way she could've orchestrated an MO like that while under the influence." Reid knew I was right. Burning someone alive took poise and control and with drugs in the mix there was no way one woman could accomplish that.

We bounced ideas off of each other during the rest of the drive. While both of us were sure Tammy didn't directly do it, it still begged the question of who did? For a while we thought maybe Tammy had a partner, someone she trusted, just like Regan and Audrey. Out of everything it made the most sense. Often times when killers formed partnerships there was always a dominant one, someone calling the shots. Based on assumptions we figured Tammy was the other one; the beta looking for a way out.

When we arrived at the station we made our way to the interrogation room, joining the rest of the team as they watched Rossi sit across from Tammy who couldn't stop crying. Her small frame shook profusely as she sobbed, her elbows resting against the table as she gripped the roots of her hair and closed her eyes.