Sanitizer

If you don't control your mind, someone else will: - John Allston

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds is not mine.

Hotch looked over at Reid who was in turn sitting looking at nothing.

"Reid are you alright?" Hotch tried to get the agent's attention.

"Yes, I was just thinking. If these are anti gay killings then the UnSub is being very careless." He ran his fingers through his hair. "In every killing there has been arterial spray, and massive crushing and stabbing damage. These are close up face to face killings - targeting young men in the Vegas gay community, yet he must be covered in blood by the time he has finished."

"So he's not afraid of contamination." Morgan added.

"Exactly, so he either knows these men are not a danger in that way, or it doesn't matter to him. I would guess it's the latter."

JJ looked up from her file. "So we are going to take this? The local PD is asking for help now."

Hotch nodded. "Twenty minutes guys."

Reid was going back to his hometown, but right now this was the very last place he wanted to be.

…………

Andrew Fellows opened his mouth to scream but the garrotte tightening around his neck stopped all sound. As the wire finally slipped through the skin and the blood flew he stopped struggling and lay still in the arms of the man he had thought of as a friend. His body fell hard to the floor of the old prison and the man picked up a small axe and started to hack. He chopped randomly at Andrew Fellows until he could no longer lift his arms. In front of him was a mashed mess. Vigorously he wiped snot and tears off his face and walked away.

He showered in cold water, and washed his hair. His bloodied clothes were placed in a bin bag, and he slipped into his uniform. He took one last quick look at his victim and left the building via a rear exit.

………………..

They stood in a rough circle around the body. They had on protective shoe coverings and gloves on to match. It was a mess. They had no ID yet, and it was only just recognisable as a male. He had been tall and slender but that was about all they could tell. Even his hair colour was disguised by the amount of blood and brains now mixing with it.

This whole situation was creeping Reid out. He was sure that when they first arrived the security guard had looked familiar. The way the guy looked at him gave him a knot of worry in his stomach. Now even though the man had gone he felt uncomfortable. He had to get out of this place quickly. Reid looked up at Aaron. "Did you say it was showers through there?" Hotch gave him a nod. "I'll go and check it out."

Spencer walked quickly towards the shower block door. The door opened quietly and swung shut with a small click.

It was a big area. Rows of old rusty showers, the shower floor covered in rust marks and rat droppings. As he walked along the rows he noticed water pooling on the floor. He crouched down and put a finger into the water and lifted it carefully to his nose. It didn't smell stagnant so someone had been here using the water.

He stood up and looked behind him; suddenly feeling a bit spooked being here alone. He carried on walking slowly to see where the water had come from. Reid was sure the security guy had told them that this place was un-used. Again that spooky feeling and he turned to look behind him. Nothing except the creepy silence of the old abandoned prison shower block. As he walked further in he could see where the water had come from. Right at the back in the far corner he could see one of the showers had been recently used. Cautiously he walked forwards.

Reid crouched down next to the pool of water. On the old cracked white tiles was a discolouration, only this time it didn't look like rust. It was too red. Tiny dots. Little splashes of blood. Spencer reached into his pocket for his cell phone though he doubted he would get a cell reception here. He flipped open his phone and looked at the bars – nothing. The shower block suddenly felt too hot and claustrophobic. He heard something behind him and span, pulling his gun from its holster. Nothing.

"You are freaking out. Calm down." He muttered to himself, replacing the weapon.

Again a sound but as he started to move forward the lights flickered.

He stood still and looked at the old strip lighting flickering on and off. Off and on, and then finally off. Darkness.

Spencer couldn't breath. Sudden fear enveloped him. He was sure there was someone here with him he could hear them breathing. His heart thumped too fast as he tried to get control of the creeping panic attack he could feel.

"Aaron." He wanted to scream it, but it came out as little more than a whimper. Slowly he went for his phone again. Maybe the little bit of light he got from that would help? Anything. Just something so he wasn't standing here exposed in the dark.

Something was behind him. Something breathed on his neck. As he span the phone jumped from his hand and clattered away somewhere in the inky darkness. Somewhere where there might be someone waiting. Someone who was attacking people just like him. Mutilating them. Smashing their bodies until they where a messy pulp.

Across his foot.

Quick and scuttling. Rats. He was here with rats alone in the dark. Unable to move.

Across his face. Something touched him again. He put his hands to his face and wiped it away. Sweat was running down the sides of his face. He could almost hear it seeping from his skin.

Move.

Move and find a wall. Then he could orientate himself again. Oh so slowly he took a step forwards.

Breathe.

He realised he was holding his breath. "Breath Spencer." He whispered to himself, but it sounded like an impossible order. One foot then the next. Not that hard to do.

A clattering and somewhere off to the side a bleep a sudden flash of light, and then nothing. Someone had picked up his phone. Someone was very close but all he could hear was his heart trying to escape his body. He kept his eyes on the location of the light he had seen and drew his gun again.

"I know you are there." He wasn't sure if he had said the words or just thought them. He took a step backwards. "Who are you?"

Another step back into the blackness. Pointing the gun straight ahead. He could feel his hands were shaking. Where the hell was Aaron? Why was Derek not wondering why he was so long?

Sweat running down his back now as his breaths came short and fast.

…………………

Hotch stood talking quietly to JJ. He wanted as little media coverage on this for now as they could manage. He wanted this UnSub to come to them. So keeping this out of the press was the first move.

Derek was walking around the room, trying to profile it. Impossible, this was an abandoned prison and this was the first staging area when new inmates had been brought in from the shower block.

He glanced over at the door Reid had gone through.

Morgan walked the perimeter of the room and then back to Hotch again.

Once again he looked over at the door to the shower block. "I think I will check up on Reid." He was sure there had been light shining under the door before, and now there was nothing. Derek suddenly felt a tightness in his stomach. He slipped out his phone as he walked forwards, but the reception wouldn't permit him to make a call. "Hotch." Morgan sounded worried. "Something's wrong." And now he was running towards the door.

…………………

A voice from the darkness.

"Pervert."

Reid swung around to try to locate the source of the sound, but the acoustics were strange here and he was feeling panicky and confused.

"Deviant."

Again he spun on the spot trying to work out where to point the gun.

"You are a disease."

Spencer let out an involuntary moan.

Then everything happened in slow motion and everything happened at the same time.

"Reid!"

Spencer spun and opened fire. The shots went wild, hitting the ceiling, hitting the floor, smashing off the walls. Then silence. A darkness. A pain around his neck. He dropped the gun to the floor as he tried to get the garrotte off from around his neck.

Reid felt he was being dragged backwards. Unable to scream. Unable to call for help and even in the darkness he could feel a strange spinning and then a sudden waft of warm air on his face before the darkness engulfed him completely.

……………….

Derek opened the shower room door and called out for Reid. He was met by a hail of gunfire hitting completely random places. The shots came no where near him as he was still standing in the small L shaped area and was shielded.

What was more worrying was the way it suddenly stopped. He was sure he heard a strangled cry in the echoing room, but it could just as well have been his own yelp of alarm as he jumped back and crouched.

Then silence.

A whimpering sound?

The sound of something being dropped.

Something sliding.

A click.

Then nothing.

……………………..

A/N: do I carry on? Delete it? Please let me know. :c) thank you