F I F T Y  S E V E N

XANDER INHALED A sharp, yet shaky breathe as he looked around the room, taking in the details.

"Fuck!"

He cursed as his niece's phone went to voicemail again. The sun was about to set, he glanced at the sight of the Wiley house in frustration.

The living room was completely trashed. Framed pictures were shattered on the floor, the sofa was torn up, and whatever order that was once there had turned into chaos. And right at the center of the room, Harper's wheelchair was positioned perfectly.

But she was nowhere to be found.

"You're dead, Clarke. I'll kill you myself if I have to." Xander spat out, slicking down his blonde hair in the process.

This meant one thing: Scout was no longer safe. If he had gone after Harper then that meant the next person on his list was going to be his daughter.

But what brought this along? Why now? Why not before?

The male glanced down at his cellphone, which he had been palming nervously, as the sudden feeling of being watched came over him. He tore the back of the device off and bit down on his tongue as his sneaking suspicions were right.

A microphone had been glued into the plastic, recording all conversations he had and transmitting it. Clarke was listening into every conversation he had. He wasn't merely listening into his phone calls or hacking into his text messages. He heard all the chats he had with Scout, all the late night talks with Harper, and all the moments Xander had cursed his own brother's name.

Clarke was on to him right from the beginning.

The older blonde froze, recalling the last time he had talked to his niece. It had been the night before where the two of them sat outside and Xander had said more about his past than he intended to. Thankfully, he hadn't told her everything. But if he did, Scout would've been a mess.

"I - I don't know. Should I tell him the truth?"

"Remember our one rule?"

She nodded, "I go down, you go down."

"Once the FBI finds out the truth about you, it's only going to be a matter of time before they figure out about me. But - ultimately - it's your choice to make."

Xander crouched down to the floor and grasped his head tightly. Of course, if Scout told the truth then they would find out about him. And once they did that then the next person on the FBI's copping block would be Clarke Wiley, aka the same man who faked his death after all these years.

Their last conversation must've been what tipped the male over the edge. And now he had Harper in his grasp. Taking her and making a mess of it, it was a message.

Plucking the microphone from the back of his cellphone and then throwing it away, he tried to call his niece one last time but got send to voicemail again. The older blonde took in another sharp breath.

This was it, wasn't it? This is where it all ends, after all these years.

"Not the time to reminisce, Xan. You can't fuck this up, you can't do that again." He muttered to himself.

He ran to Scout's room and grabbed the bag she had hidden under the floorboards. It was always there in case of an emergency, prepped if a clean getaway was ever needed. He had always hoped that he would've been smart enough so that it would never be needed but it was only a matter of time.

It was always when, not if.

Scout woke up to the sound of strumming acoustics and light humming. A smile tugged at her lips when she recognized the song that was playing. Even in her sleep, she knew a good song when she heard it.

"What are you doing playing our song?" She sighed peacefully, stretching her arms above her head.

It was dark out now and the only light came from Spencer's nightstand and the bathroom. Scout peeked one eye open, seeing the tall doctor standing by his drawers with a circular object in his hands.

"Our song? I didn't know we had a song."

Scout pushed herself up with her elbows, "You got a record player?"

The circular object that he held had, in fact, been a record vinyl. She gave him a lopsided smirk, taking in the sight of Spencer in nothing but his boxers and messy bed head.

"Yeah. You know I'm not a big fan of technology, and I read that a record player is the only proper way to listen to old music. So, it made sense to me." He shrugged, putting away whatever he was looking at.

"And," Spencer walked towards her, sitting on his side of the bed. "I don't recall this being our song."

The brunette rolled her eyes.

"I remember this being the first song that I ever showed you. Hey Jude by the Beatles? Yeah, that was all me, Doc."

He pursed his lips and dramatically shook his head, "Nope, not ringing any bells, I'm afraid."

"Eidetic memory who?" Scout chuckled, playfully pushing his arm away from her.

"Hey!"

"What?"

Spencer pouted, "I was going in for a kiss."

"Well, too bad. Not until you admit that I'm right and you remember the moment that I'm talking about."

"Fine," He laughed, scooping her into his arms and placing her on his lap. "I remember. It was on the trip to our undercover mission in Indiana. The same moment when you made fun of me for only listening to classical music and said that classic rock is better."

"And?" Scout leaned in, placing a small kiss onto his neck.

"And what?"

"And you agree that I'm always right?" She continued to pepper his neck with small kisses, going from his collar bone to the nape of his jawline.

Spencer let out a small hum, "I don't know about that."

The brunette running her hands into his hair, "Say it."

"No."

"Please?" She gently sucked in the skin of his neck, not pressing down too hard but just enough.

Spencer groaned and rolled his eyes, "Fine. You, Scout Wiley, are always right. No matter what. Even if you're wrong, I'll always tell you that you're right. Happy?"

"Very."

Scout pulled herself out of the doctor's grasp and stood up, stretching once more in hopes of waking up. They only knocked out for less than an hour, but it was enough of a power nap that made her feel refreshed and not groggy.

Spencer stared at her, his eyes watching her body carefully and inspecting every crevasse of her skin.

"What?" She looked down, realizing she was naked.

He shook his head, "Nothing. I just - never realized how many scars you had before."

"Oh - uh, yeah. Why? You don't - You never noticed before?" Scout bit down on her bottom lip.

"I guess I never did."

Digging into one of her drawers, she found a pair of clean underwear that she had left behind and slipped them on. She also tugged on one of Spencer's shirts, the same one she had worn before that had Las Vegas Public High School: Physical Education on it.

"How about this?" The brunette pushed back his hair so that it was out of his eyes. "I'll go and heat up that pizza you ordered earlier and you go and take a shower. Once I'm done in the kitchen, I'll join you."

"Sounds like a perfect plan." Spencer leaned down and kissed her before heading to the bathroom.

Scout smiled sadly. She planned to tell him the truth during dinner but now that the moment was so close, she wasn't sure she could do it anymore.

Maybe it would be best to just keep it all a secret.

She sighed, "What am I doing anymore?"

Opening Spencer's closet, she grabbed his burgundy cardigan and slipped it on, as well as his favorite red socks. It was chilly in the apartment as her body still missed the warmth of the bed.

Scout glanced out the window, trying to get a look at how high the moon had risen and when something across the street caught her eyes. In the apartment complex next to Spencer's, the curtain of another's window blew closed. It was as if someone had been looking and turned away the same moment she walked over.

Her eyes narrowed, the sudden feeling of being watched came over her. It was the same feeling Xander had always taught her to trust completely. Trusting it and not liking the fact that she was walking around without pants, the brunette picked up her jeans that Spencer threw off earlier and tugged them on.

On the kitchen table, she found her cellphone that she forgot she had left behind and turned it on.

"13 missed calls? And all from Xander. Shit."

The door knocked loudly, making her yelp at the sound. She pocketed her device and thinking quickly, grasped a large kitchen knife from the drawer. With her back pressed against the door, Scout peered into the peephole and swung the door open.

"What are you doing here?" The brunette said in a half whisper, half yell.

Her uncle glared at her, "Don't you ever answer your phone, Kid?"

"I - I had it on silent. Again, I repeat. What in the fucking hell are you doing here?"

"Have you told him yet?"

She paused, "What?"

"Have you told him the truth yet? Did you tell Spencer what you do?" Xander glanced around in the apartment's hallway, making sure that they were alone.

"No, not yet. I was going to, but -"

"You got scared?"

"Yeah."

The older blonde rolled his eyes and grabbed the pistol he had in his pocket, "Quick, tuck this into your waistband and put on your shoes."

"What?"

"Just do it, okay!"

Scout nodded and did as he said, knowing that he only used that certain tone of voice when he was truly nervous. Something was going on and it would be best to listen to his instructions.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" The brunette pulled her hair into a ponytail and pushed the cardigan sleeves up to her elbows.

"You're mom is missing. He took her."

Scout's mouth went dry, "Who took her?"

"My - boss. Look, I'll tell you more in the car but we've got to get you out of here. Has anyone else tried contacting you recently or have you felt suspicious about anything?"

"I -" She glanced back into the apartment. "I felt like someone was watching me from across the street, in the building next to us."

"You're probably right."

"He's sending people to actually kill me, isn't he?"

Xander nodded, "Yeah, and your boyfriend too. Look, I'll answer all of your questions in the car but we've really got to get you out of here."

"Scout?"

The brunette turned around, biting on her bottom lip as the familiar voice spoke. 'This wasn't supposed to happen like this! I was supposed to be the one to tell him. I was supposed to be the person that determined when and how.'

"What's going on? And who's - Wait a minute. I know you, you're the nurse that treated Scout after she got shot -"

'Fuck, why does he always have to remember everything?'

"Spencer - Look, I've got to go. Something's come up, an emergency and I don't -"

"Kid, we don't have time for this."

"I know, just - I love you, Spence, okay? Stay away from all the windows and keep your head down. You have your gun on you, right? And your vest?"

Spencer's brows scrunched, "Yeah, but -"

"Go put it on. If someone knocks on the door, do not answer. Just stay here and don't move -"

"If we don't move soon, then we're gonna have company, Kid. Wrap it up now!" Xander said sternly, already walking towards the stairway of the apartment.

Quickly, Scout stood on her tiptoes and placed a kiss on Spencer lips. He didn't kiss back and she wasn't surprised he didn't, he was confused. The doctor placed a hand on her jaw and looked into her eyes.

"Please," He practically begged. "Tell me what's going on. I can help."

"I can't. I can't have you involved in this. I need you to be here and safe."

"Scout! Heads up!" Xander yelled from across the hallway as the elevator doors from the opposite side dinged open.

A tall, bulky looking man had her in his sights. The gun in his hand lifted up and aimed directly at her, before shifting over slightly and choosing Spencer as his target.

Without a second thought and in the flash of a eye, the pistol that Xander had her tuck into her waistband was out in the open. Scout pulled the trigger of the gun, hitting the man directly between the eyes with perfect aim. He was dead before the elevator doors were even fully opened.

"W - What?" Spencer's jaw dropped, glancing at the brunette. "You don't - You can't - shoot?"

Xander ran back and grasped her by the forearm, pulling her away from not only the scene, but from Spencer as well. Scout took one last look at his shocked face before turning towards her uncle and running down the hallway, through the stairwell, and out the apartment complex.

"Fuck!" Scout yelled as she got into Xander's van and hit the dashboard with her foot.

"What the hell happened back there?! What the fuck is going on, Xan? Why is -"

Her eyes landed on her emergency duffle bag that rest at her feet. With an opened mouth and teary eyes, she looked at her uncle, not believing what was going to happen.

"Where's my mother?" Scout whispered.

"He took her." Xander started the ignition. "My boss isn't who you think he is. Scout, he's still alive. He's the one that's been calling all the shots this whole time."

Her lips trembled, "Who?"

GUESS WHAT?
I'M GOING ON INSTAGRAM LIVE!
follow my insta @emilyxsal

I'll posting book 2 while on live, will be doing a Q & A, and reading the first chapter before it goes on Wattpad! The date will be announced soon so just be on the the lookout.

Please consider voting/commenting if you like this story and want show your support for more content.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:
THANK YOU FOR 200k READS! THATS DOUBLE THE AMOUNT WE HAD BACK AT THE END OF FEBRUARY, THATS CRAZY!

Interested in more of my Spencer Reid content? Check out my most recent book, OUTRUNNING KARMA!

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