magnetic ◊ criminal minds

lv.

lv. lauren
( season six, episode eighteen )

PRENTISS was gone. Lyra convinced herself she would return, but something about this case was clearly getting to her. So, Lyra sent her one simple text. It read, "come clean". No more, no less. She did not get a response, nor any indication that the message was read.

"I've got four names on the bottom of the list Prentiss gave us," Morgan said, holding up a sticky note. "Luke Renault, Lawrence Riley, Lila Rafferty, Lyle Rogers," he listed.

"All with the initials LR," Seaver said.

"The CIA uses cryptograms like that to assign the non-official cover agents working the same case," Hotch stated.

"So do other foreign countries," Morgan said. "These last four names are covers, spies."

"Wait," Garcia said, grabbing the paper from Morgan. "No. This isn't right. Do you see this space? That shouldn't be here."

"It's not?" Lyra signed.

"Could it be a formatting error?" Reid asked.

"No, this is a spreadsheet template. The formatting doesn't allow for this. There's a missing name on here," Garcia said.

"It's another spy whose cover is LR," Hotch said.

"'Lauren Reynolds is dead'," Reid quoted. When Hotch questioned him, he repeated it. "Prentiss said that on a phone call seventeen days ago. But her intonation wasn't surprise or grief. It was like a mantra, like she was reminding herself. 'Lauren Reynolds', LR."

"That's what she was hiding," Lyra realized.

"You knew?" Rossi asked.

Lyra shook her head. "Not the details. That she was hiding something. I didn't think... this," she clarified.

"If Prentiss is the last name on that list, she's on Doyle's list, too," Seaver said.

Lyra bit her lip and pulled out her phone, trying Prentiss again. Hotch was trying to reach her over a phone call as well - Lyra was close to resorting to that.

"That explains her behaviour the past month. The secrets, the evasion," Rossi said.

"She's been biting her fingernails again, too," Reid said.

Lyra walked over to Hotch, who was at Prentiss' desk. Inside a drawer, her phone. The two shared a look. Hotch called for the others, Prentiss' phone, gun and badge in hand.

"She left her badge and gun? Why would she do that?" Morgan asked.

"That- that doesn't make sense. Why run? We're her family. We can help," Reid stuttered.

"Doyle's killing families. She's not married, not close to relatives. He was ready to wipe us out," Rossi said. "She ran to protect us."

Lyra clenched her fist, nails digging into her palm. "Damn it," she cursed aloud, turning and walking off, ignoring the looks from her team.

"Lyra, you can't go after her. We don't even know where she is," Hotch warned.

Lyra paused, eyes blue. "No," she signed, "but I can try to find her."

♢

"She's a trained spy," Rossi said. "She doesn't wanna be found."

"She knows all of our tricks. We don't know any of hers," Morgan said.

"Well, that's just not true now," Lyra signed, kneeling down. "She doesn't know all my tricks. None of you do." With those words, she placed her palm against the floor.