Chapter 8: In my arms

Spencer's POV

I sit next to Lina on her bed and watch her peacefully sleep in my arms and I smile. I'm glad that she trusts me enough to do this. She's so beautiful.... I think to myself. Just then, I hear a knock on the door and Hotch comes in with the team. I would've quickly jumped off the bed before they saw me holding Lina, but I don't want to wake her up so I swallow my embarrassment.

"Is she awake yet?" asks Hotch.

"She was but then fell asleep again." I feel my cheeks getting hot as everyone stares at our embrace.

Prentiss smiles. "We're glad that she's okay."

"Did you catch the guy?" I question, remembering the case.

"Yes, the police have him now," answers Rossi with a nod.

JJ steps forward and gently strokes Lina's hair. "How long does Lina need to stay here before going home?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I'm not sure, I'm going to have to ask the doctor." I get ready to stand up.

"No, no. You stay here since you two are looking pretty comfortable." Morgan smirks. "I'll ask the doc." I blush and watch him walk out of the room. Just then, JJ's phone rings.

"Hello?" JJ answers. We all watch her as her expression turns serious. "Okay, we'll be there," she says and hangs up.

"What is it?" Hotch asks.

"A mass grave has been discovered in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. The police department invited us to investigate."

Hotch sighs. "Reid, will you be okay staying here with Lina?"

I nod. "Yes, of course. Call me if you need me." Hotch nods and the team leaves the room.

"Bye, Reid." Prentiss waves at me and I give her a smile. I'm about to close my eyes to rest for a bit when Morgan comes into the room.

"Hey, man. I spoke to the doctor and he says Yang should be fine to go in 2 days," he states.

"Okay. Thanks, Morgan."

"You're gonna stay here?"

I nod my head. "Yeah, I'm gonna find a hotel to stay at."

"Okay then." He scratches his chin. "And by the way, you two look good together." He winks at me and I turn red.

"Shhh!" I whisper-shout, "she might hear you!" He chuckles and leaves the room. I glance down and relief washes over me when I see that Lina's still sleeping peacefully. But then, tears fill my eyes again as I remember the torture that she has gone through before.

Flashback

Four hours ago, the LAPD received a call that another victim of the Flesh Carver was found dead. So now, the team and I are getting ready to leave the police station and investigate, in hopes of finding clues that may lead us to the UnSub.

"Reid and Prentiss, I want you guys to head over to the coroner and look at the victim," Hotch orders. "JJ and Rossi, speak with the victim's family. And the rest, stay back with me." Everyone nods and leaves to do what they're told, so Prentiss and I are now driving to the coroner's office.

"Man, how many women has he killed again?" Prentiss asks, keeping her eyes on the road.

"Sixteen including the one that was just reported," I answer and she sighs. We drive in silence for the rest of the car ride. This is one of the worst cases we've seen in a while. The UnSub that we're dealing with is a sadistic serial killer. He stalks his victims first, abducts them when they're outside, brings them back to their own home where he tortures them, and finally he kills them.

Shortly after, we arrive and enter a room where the victim's body lies. The coroner, a short lady with dark hair, removes the sheet covering the corpse and reveals cuts all over the body. "Victim is Phoebe Murphy—cause of death was exsanguination," the lady states.

"Is there also a rose carved into her wrist?" Prentiss tries peeking underneath the victim's arm.

"Yup. The same one that I've seen on all the other victims." She sighs. "Except this one has another word carved onto her skin."

"A word?" I ask and the lady lifts Phoebe's lifeless arm and turns it around. Just below the carved rose, I can see faint scratches that form a word. "This isn't part of his signature."

Prentiss squints her eyes. "What does it say?"

"Hold on." I pick up a magnifying glass. Up close I can see the word "Angeli" on it. It says 'Angeli'."

"Is that a name?" Prentiss questions. "Perhaps the victim carved it herself to tell us the name of the UnSub."

"No, our UnSub is definitely a man. 'Angeli' is more of a woman's name." I lean a bit closer to inspect the carving. "Besides, it looks like she died before she was able to finish. There are faint marks that indicate she was trying to carve in another letter."

"Maybe it's the name of a loved one? A mother, sister, friend, or girlfriend?"

"I highly doubt it's a girlfriend," I state. "All the other victims were straight, so it wouldn't make sense for the UnSub to change his victimology."

"I'm gonna call Garcia and see if she can find any contacts on Phoebe's phone with the name 'Angeli'." Prentiss dials her phone, a few seconds later Garcia picks up.

"How can I be of service?" asks Garcia's cheery voice.

"Hey, Garcia. You're on speaker and Reid's here," Prentiss answers. "I need you to go through Phoebe Murphy's phone and see if she has contact with someone named Angeli, with an 'I'."

"Angeli with an 'I' coming right up," Garcia responds and I hear typing. "I don't have anyone listed with that name but I do have an Angelina Yang."

"That's it! She was trying to carve Angelina's name on her wrist," I say excitedly.

"PG, can you send us Angelina's info?" Prentiss asks.

"Already did," Garcia answers, "anything else you need?"

"Nope. Thanks so much." Prentiss hangs up. About twenty minutes later, we are back at the station with the rest of the team.

"What did you guys find?" Hotch asks Prentiss and I.

"The name 'Angeli' was carved on Phoebe's wrist," I state.

Prentiss nods her head in agreement. "Yeah, it looks like she did it herself since the cuts were shallow and hesitant."

"We had Garcia go through Phoebe's contacts and it turns out she knows someone named Angelina Yang."

"But why that name?" Morgan raises an eyebrow.

I shrug. "That's what we're trying to figure out."

"Do you have Angelina's phone number?" asks Hotch. "We can bring her in for questioning."

"Yeah, Garcia said she sent us the info."

"I got it." JJ waves her phone at us. "305-792-1480."

I quickly dial the number on my phone but no one picks up. "She's not answering." Just then someone else calls me. It's Garcia so I answer. "Hey, Garcia. Did you find something?"

"I was going through some of the recent conversations and calls that Phoebe had. And wow, this girl loves to party. She asks her friends to go clubbing with her almost every week. I mean who has the time to even do that? Also, based on her credit card history she spends half of her money on clothes—"

"Garcia...." I cut her off.

"Right. Sorry, getting off track here. But I also found two creepy voicemails that she left for Angelina."

Rossi rubs his beard in interest. "Can you play it for us?"

"Of course I can, cupcake." She does some clicking and typing on her keyboard, and the audio starts playing.

"Angelina...." says a woman's voice from the phone. "Help me, it's Michael. He's the guy that has been abducting all those women—and now he has me. I'm sorry for calling you no fun, but please help me. I gotta go, he's coming back."

JJ raises her eyebrows. "That's Phoebe talking."

"Wait, Garcia, you said there's a second voicemail?" I ask.

"Playing it to you right... now," Garcia replies.

"Watch out, Angelina," whispers Phoebe's weak voice. "Michael said that he's going to get you next—you have to hide and call the police. I love you, Angelina.... You're my best friend."

Then a man's voice comes on and he yells, "How the hell did you get your phone?!?"

I shift my weight from one foot to the other. "The UnSub's name is Michael."

"You're gonna regret this," he snarls. After that, I hear the sounds of Phoebe's screams as he stabs her with a knife, then the audio ends.

"I don't think you guys need to listen to the rest of it, my furry friends," Garcia sighs solemnly.

Hotch crosses his arms and looks at everyone. "Okay, we know that Angelina is Michael's next victim."

"Actually, he might already have gotten to her." I furrow my brows. "She didn't pick up the phone when I called."

"When was the voicemail sent?"

"Just last night, sir," answers Garcia.

Morgan stands up straighter. "She might still be alive."

"Then let's get going," Hotch says with authority. "Everyone has the address from the info that Garcia sent, right?" We all nod and head out. Within 10 minutes, we are at Angelina's apartment, since she lives pretty close to the station.

"JJ and Reid, stay outside the main entrance of the building in case Michael tries to escape," Hotch orders, "the rest, let's go inside."

JJ and I aim our guns at the entrance, getting ready to shoot in case Michael tries to run. But luckily there is no need to, Hotch and Morgan manage to talk him down and I watch him walk past me with Morgan escorting him. A few minutes later, I see a woman being wheeled out on a gurney which I assume is Angelina.

I put my gun away and walk up to Rossi. "Is she okay?"

"She has some pretty serious cuts and bruises, but she'll be fine," he answers. "Unfortunately we weren't able to get to her before he carved the rose."

I watch as Angelina gets loaded into the ambulance and feel a wash of relief, knowing that she's safe now. After that, we drive back to the station where Michael is being held in a room and I observe him on the other side of the one-way mirror.

"Michael Quintus." Morgan walks up behind me. "This son of a bitch killed 16 young women and severely injured one."

I sigh and shake my head, thinking about the pain that the victims went through. "These poor girls.... How do people even have the heart to do this to innocent people?!?" I slam my fist on the glass door, anger flowing through my veins.

Present

I feel Lina move in my arms. Glancing down, I see her looking at me. "Hey," I whisper softly.

"Oh my gosh." She blinks sleepily. "I'm so sorry, I must've dozed off." She quickly tries to push herself off of me.

"No, it's okay. Stay with me." Without thinking, I hold on to her tighter. I immediately feel myself blush. Why would you do that you idiot? But luckily, Lina just smiles at me and rests her head on my chest.

"Where's the rest of the team?" she asks.

"They left for another case."

Lina looks at me, surprised. "Then what are you doing here? You should be with them."

"Hotch told me to stay here with you. Besides, I wanted to make sure that you're okay." She gives me the sweetest smile and I feel my heart skip a beat.

"How long do I need to stay here?"

"The doctor said you should be good to go home in 2 days."

"Two days???" Lina groans, "what about you? Don't tell me you plan on staying here for that long."

"I'll check into a hotel and sleep there, and during the day I'll come visit you." I gently squeeze her hand.

"You don't have to do that, you know. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

I chuckle and shake my head. "If you were so capable of taking care of yourself, you would've gone to the doctor for your stomach pain and not passed out during a case."

Lina rolls her eyes and smiles. "Fine."

After that we stay silent and just enjoy each other's presence. My arm is numb from holding Lina for hours but I don't care. Two months ago, I would've done anything to have this moment with her. Before long a nurse comes in and tells me that visiting hours are over so I say goodbye to Lina.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" I say softly.

"Yup. Goodnight, Spencer." Lina waves at me. "And thanks for staying with me." I smile and leave the room, feeling like I'm on cloud nine.