Eidetic - A Criminal Minds/Spencer Reid Story

Chapter Twenty-Two - Beginning to an End

"There is nothing permanent except change." - Heraclitus

*Vivian Santos*

For ten whole minutes, neither of us moved or said a word. I stood with my gun pointed at him and he just stared at me back with a cold, menacing smile on his face. What happened to the brother I knew and loved? What happened to my best friend? Even though I could see it with my own two eyes now, I still couldn't fully except that the man standing in front of me was not my brother. He looked like Daniel, talked like Daniel, and dressed like Daniel, but it was no longer him.

He took a step towards me, but I took a step back. "Why are you doing this, Daniel?" I asked.

"Why do you think I'm doing all of this, sis?" he replied. "I needed a way to get to you." I scoffed and tightened the grip on my gun.

"You know, there's this thing called a cell phone that a lot of people use. That would've worked too," I said. Daniel shook his head.

"Come on, Viv. This was more fun." He walked up to where Spencer was lying and he kicked him in the stomach. I felt myself flinch. All I wanted to do in that moment was to run to him and make sure he was still alive. "What do you really see in this piece of junk? He's just a nerd who can't hold his own."

"Well, I prefer this nerd to most other guys, so why don't you just back off," I said through gritted teeth. "And you never really answered my question. Why are you doing this? And your answer better not be to get to me, because I'm calling your bullshit right now." Daniel laughed and sarcastically put his hands up in defense.

"Alright, alright. I did all of this to get back at mom and dad. I saw the way they forgot about me after I disappeared. They never talked about me anymore, and I soon became nonexistent," he said. "Even though I was in another continent, I knew how mom and dad told you that I had actually died to spare your feelings, but after that, I was no more." He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I watched your every move, Viv. I watched with patience, planning the perfect opportunity to enact my revenge, so I got a fake passport and came back to America."

"So you thought that killing my best friend and then finding out that you were stalking me all this time is the best way to do that? I thought you were smarter than that."

"It was a shame that Cecilia had to die, but it was for Viktor's own good. He had no idea that she was on to him," he said. Was he serious?

"So, you're telling me that Viktor Brodsky had no idea that Cecilia knew his identity?" Daniel took an empty box and sat down on top of it.

"Of course not. He actually fell in love with her. After I shot Cecilia, I met him at the hospital to explain to him why I did it." Daniel yawned and folded his hands on his lap. "For an intelligent Russian mobster, you would think he would be wise enough to not get involved with the enemy."

"So, why did you bother to kill him? You make it sound as if he was a valuable asset to whatever your endgame is," I asked. Daniel leaned forward as a smirk spread across his face.

"He was starting to get soft on me. He was talking about leaving his life in the mafia in order to make a life with Cecilia. I didn't need any of that. So, instead of just letting him be, I used him as part of my plan," he replied. "It worked out quite well, if I might add." I couldn't believe it. What person in his right mind would ever think that something like this was okay? Well, considering that Daniel was technically a budding sociopath, it wasn't that hard to believe anymore.

"You know, months ago I would've said that this was never possible. That something like this would be impossible, but one thing I've learned from this job is that nothing is outside the realm of possibilities," I said. "I guess that all of the memories I have of you are just lies."

"Come on, sis, don't be like that. You know very well that we've had some good times together," Daniel said in a cold tone. "Besides, I practically raised you since mom and dad always had to be at work." I laughed out loud and tightened my grip on my gun.

"Maybe so, but since you're now a sociopath, I don't even know who you are anymore. It would've been better if you were actually dead."

"Wow, harsh." Daniel clutched his chest and feigned being hurt from my words. "You missed me. I know that because you didn't go to work on the anniversary of my 'murder'." I scoffed.

"That was before I knew you were devoid of any emotion," I replied. "Now, all you are to me is another unsub."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Spencer move slightly and he lifted his head weakly. Once it looked like he was able to focus, he looked up to where Daniel was, and with speed I never knew he had, he jumped up and tackled him to the ground. I took my handcuffs from my belt and slapped them on Daniel.

"What the hell happened?" I heard JJ call out. I turned and saw Agent Jennings running towards us. I pulled Daniel to his feet and started leading him out of the warehouse.

"We apprehended the unsub. That's what happened," I replied grimly. Once we were outside, I got him into the SUV and went over to the ambulance where Spencer was being treated. "How's your head?" I asked. He looked up at me and smiled.

"I'm going to have a mild concussion, but that's about it," he replied. Grabbing my hand, I sat down next to him. "How about you? You had to arrest your own brother." I looked down at the ground and kicked a few loose rocks.

"I'm just thinking that that was too easy," I said. It was true, apprehending Daniel was way too easy. He wasn't even armed. There has to be more to this, there just has to be. "When we get back to the FBI headquarters, I'm questioning him to see what's up.

"You sure you want to do that? Because I can do it." I shook my head.

"You said it yourself. You have a concussion. Besides, he's only going to want to talk to me anyways," I said. "Did anybody fill in Hotch and the rest of the team?" Spencer nodded.

"Yeah. JJ just got off the phone with him. They're on the next flight out and should be here in a few hours." I nodded, stood up, and looked over to the SUV where Daniel was. I watched as he whistled to himself, and when he saw that I was watching him, he smiled that cold, menacing smile of his. He had something else planned, and knowing him it was going to take everything little trick I knew to figure out what it was.

"A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." - Charles Spurgeon

(A/N: Sorry that this was a shorter update. There's still a couple more chapters left, so be ready! Thanks for sticking with me throughout this entire mess!)