"i'm sorry, but i have to do this." winters says, lifting up a shovel, and i shut my eyes tight and brace for impact. as the shovel smacks my head, i feel my brain shake, and everything around me becomes blurry. i'll be out by the time i get there.

-

"she's perfect. nice job ed."

"thanks. found her in an alley downtown. just wandering around by herself."

i hear two men talking in the background, and my eyes flutter open and see a lightbulb on a string just above me.

"shes waking up, grab the clothes." i hear an unfamiliar voice and look to my side and see a man. average build, probably 35-40. he has muscle, but i could definitely put up a fight.

he starts to undress me but i swear his hand away. "i can change myself." agent winters nods, and hands me a white tank top with grey shorts. as i slip off my heels, i take in my surroundings. i'm in a small room with a door, with the table i was laying on in the center of the room. grey walls, no windows.

once i'm changed, they direct me to another room, which has a camera and a laptop set up. "picture time." the unfamiliar says with a sly grin.

i feel like i'm in prison. he takes a frontal face picture, and then has me turn to the side, taking a picture of my side profiles. he then scoots back and takes a full body picture, before grabbing me by the shoulders and directing me out of the room.

he pushes me down a hallway with cages. as i peer into them as i pass by, i see a lot of girls, probably around 12, before i reach my cell. he unlocks the door and shoved me in, locking the door quickly behind me.

i examine my cell. very plain. there's a toilet in the corner, and a mattress on the floor. i lay down on the mattress, rubbing my temples in an attempt to subside the headache i received earlier.

"what's your name?" the girl across from me asks, leaning against the back wall of her cell, her eyes drilling into me.

i sit up and give a fake name, knowing that i'm undercover. "macie. you?"

"kayla. how'd you wind up here? i went outside of a club for air while my friend went to the bathroom. i was hit over the head with a shovel. next thing i knew my clothes were being ripped off of me." she mumbles, with no emotion.

i respond. "pretty much same. i was outside of a club in an alley. i went out to get some air, and then i got snuck up on from behind. how long have you been here?"

"what day is it?" she asks, genuinely trying to figure it out.

"may 26."

"well, i got taken on may 2nd. wow, i've been in here a lot longer than i thought. they've only showcased me 3 times. i've been bid on, but never sold."

"oh." that's all i could manage to get out. i don't really know how to talk to this girl. i haven't looked much into human trafficking circles, but i understand them enough. i mean i had to, otherwise i wouldn't be in this operation.

"you'll probably be showcased soon. they showcase all of the newbies within at least 2 days." kayla answers, moving to her mattress. "i'm going to sleep now." she mutters, closing her eyes as she lays down.

i nod slightly and lay down myself. i shut my eyes and wonder if i'm going to make it out of this. is the team working on this right now? are they on their way?

-

i'm awoken from my sleep by a man dragging me by my feet out of my mattress. how long did i sleep? i try to grab the side of the door, but he bangs it shut on my hand, crushing my fingers.

i wince in pain as he drags me down the corridor, and into a room with a chair. i see a wall of knives and a table with guns. there is also a wall of glass that separates me from rows of middle aged and older men. the bidders.

they force me into the chair and tie my hands together, and more nerves start to set in as a man grabs a knife from the wall. it's skinny, but it's sharp. i glance at agent winters, and he gives me a reassuring nod, before turning to the bidders. "let's see how she can handle pain." he says, flatly, before the other man walks over to me with the knife in one hand, and a fist in his other.

he punches me across the face, causing my head to rock from side to side, before the image becomes clear again. then i'm hit again, but this time, it's multiple quick punches. i try to not wince at the pain, no matter how badly it hurts.

after the last punch, he transfers his knife to his dominant hand, and breaks the skin around my wrists, causing blood to rush out. tears fall down my face as he cuts the other one.

just as he is about to cut my thighs, the back door to the room of bidders busts open. SWAT agents fill the room, followed by my own team, shouting things like FBI and telling them to back away from me.

the man pick up his gun and aims it at the agents as more workers of the ring enter the room, all strong men. they all raise rifles and pistols at the swat agents, and shoot to break the glass. just then, a full on shootout begins.

to my right, agent winters drops to the ground, and rub my bloody wrists against the rope trying to free myself and not get caught in the crossfire. i look around frantically and my eyes meet morgan's, who is guarding the door, making sure no bidders get out.

eventually, i get my wrists free and drop down out of my chair, ducking down. i feel a bullet go through my foot and i yelp in pain, yanking my feet up to my chest. i look down as my foot begins to drip blood, and the SWAT agents advance to the back room where all of the girls are. there were so many people working the ring back there. god, i hope kayla is okay.

as the sounds rings in my ears, i feel someone tryin to get my attention. my vision begins to blur and i can see messy dark hair at my side. it's spencer.

"spencer..."

"stells, stay awake you're going to be okay." he whisper shouts.

just then, my vision becomes clear again as he creates a tourniquet from his sleeves to stop my wrists from bleeding, and tells his mic that medics are needed.

"spencer, go. i'll be fine. there's over a dozen girls back there."

he gives me a disapproving look. "stella.."

"i'll be fine. GO." i shout, and he gets up, hesitantly, and heads into the back room. i look out into the audience, and see many agents arresting the bidders.

once they're all handcuffed and being hauled out in groups, agent winters runs into the back room to assess the injuries back there, and derek runs up with a medic.

"stella, you're okay. you're going to be okay."

the medic lifts up my shot foot. "through and through. she'll be fine." i hear one say faintly as they lay me on the gurney and haul me out to a ambulance.

-

they don't bother taking me to the hospital, because they can assess and patch up my gunshot wound in the ambulance. they stitch up my wrists, and check me out for other injuries, but they don't find any. they take me off of the bed, handing me a blanket, and set me on the step of the ambulance as i watch everyone come out in handcuffs.

soon, the agents start coming out, as well as girls who were up for sale. i make eye contact with kayla, and she gives me a soft smile as she keeps walking. i let go out a sigh of relief that i didn't even know i was holding.

soon enough, my team comes out of the building as more medics rush in, and that's when i see spencer. he speed walks over to me and embraces me in his arms. then i let my tears fall as i feel his heart beating super quickly.

"stella i had no idea you were in there. why didn't you tell us?" he mumbles into the crook of my neck.

"i wasn't allowed to tell any of you. how long was i in there for?"

"a day and a half. i'm just so glad you're okay. did they do anything to you?"

"just a couple punches to my face and they cut my wrists. that's all. i swear." as i pull away and wipe my tears.

as soon as my hands leave my face, spencer grasps my cheeks and pulls my lips to his. i am shocked at first, and don't know whether to kiss back, or pull away, knowing that our entire team is around.

but i give in.

i deepen the kiss and after a few seconds, i pull away and see derek and emily watching from a distance. when they see that i saw them, they immediately look away. i look around for hotch or rossi, and i don't see them. thank god.

"what was that for?" i ask spencer with a smile.

"stella, i- i like you more than a friend."

-