1 | TREPIDATION. [SPENCER REID]

FIFTEEN.

FIFTEEN ; BOXED IN.

The emails continued for two months. They were not regular, they had no scheduled time, no specific amount a week. Quinn Carson had received eight coded emails from Joseph Lawrence over sixty two days, each of them as alarming as the first.

But Kyle Masters had promised her that Lawrence would not be able to find her. He had swore to her that she would be safe. Although Quinn felt insecure, she knew she had to trust Masters. She had for seven years.

Perhaps that's why she kept quiet about the emails.

A storm roared above her, thunder shaking the small apartment she called home. Quinn sat upon her couch, awaiting for the text from Spencer to let her know that he was outside of her building. A day before Halloween, the team had been called into work, for a young boy who had gone missing exactly a year earlier had reappeared. Garcia had informed her when she had called that it had happened the year before as well, hence why the BAU was being brought in.

The rain beat down on the building that housed Quinn. The meteorologist on the local news had said that this storm was the year's worst and that everyone should prepare to stay inside for the night. These warnings did not apply to the team, for it was almost eleven at night and she was preparing to be picked up so she wouldn't have to walk in the torrential conditions.

Her phone vibrated next to her, Spencer's name popping up on the screen above the text. She grabbed her things and ran out the door, down the stairs and out of the building, using her go-bag as a makeshift umbrella. Reid laughed to himself as he watched Quinn climb in the car. "The rain's awful," he noted, making Quinn stare at him with narrowed eyes.

"Really?" she asked, a sarcastic tone laced within her words, making Spencer suppress a grin. "I hadn't noticed."

Over the two months he had gotten to know Quinn, he had seen her begin to break out of her shell. She had become more comfortable in her surroundings and who she had surrounded herself with. Although she was still guarded and at times timid, she surprised him everyday. Whether it was a teasing comment or an act of kindness towards a stranger, Quinn's true colors were starting to peak out. Colors that Spencer knew created a painting to be marveled at, one that would put famed artists to shame.

As the car continued down the road, Spencer noticed that Quinn was quiet, more than usual. She had been acting strangely over the past week, making the genius watch her actions more carefully. He glanced away from the road, his eyes landing on her momentarily. The girl sat staring out the window with her fingers resting on her knee, tapping out a one-two-one beat.

Spencer stiffened as he realized what she was doing. This was a nervous habit she had picked up from Masters. What she was nervous about however, he was unable to pick up on.