A/N: I have fallen in love with CSI: NY all over again recently and I decided to pair that show up with my all-time favorite, Criminal Minds. This is totally AU though, since there is no BAU team and Hotch and Emily are living in New York City.
Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds nor CSI: NY.
The shots rang out suddenly, down the corridor of the busy hospital and Detective Emily Prentiss' head shot up at the sudden blasting noise bouncing off the glass walls. The young girl lying in the hospital bed she had been guarding practically jumped out of the covers before Emily held up a hand to signal her to stay put. She drew her weapon and raced to the open doorway of the hospital room. People were screaming and running in all directions, disorienting the detective as she tried to find the source of the gunfire.
A figure jumped out in front of her and she let out a strangled gasp as she raised her Glock. She nearly pulled the trigger before she realized it was the FBI agent that had been assigned to the case.
"Hotchner, you bastard! I nearly put a round in you!" She shrieked as she looked up into his light brown eyes.
He ignored her completely and instead grabbed her arm roughly before shoving her back into the room.
"Stay with her. Do not let anyone in here!" And he was off again, pushing people in the direction leading away from the gunman. Emily slammed the door shut, hit the little button on the knob to lock it and rushed back over to the bed.
"Cindy, we have to get you out of here, okay? Just stay calm; I won't let anything happen to you," the detective said as calmly as possible. She moved across the room to grab a wad of tissues out of their box before she moved back to the redheaded girl and tugged the tape off the back of her hand. Emily knew that what she was doing was probably not going to go well with the doctors but she had to get this eyewitness out of here. Cindy's health meant nothing if the girl was not alive. With that in mind, she pulled the IV out of Cindy's hand and pressed the tissues over the needle's former place.
"Hold it down," she instructed as she helped her out of the bed and walk across the room. Before either had a chance to do much, the glass wall to their left shattered, scattering glass across the floor and through the air. All Emily could think was that the murderer after Cindy had found them at last. She didn't even realize that she had been hit until Cindy screamed. Emily finally saw that she was on the floor and the whole left side of her body had gone pleasantly numb but the feeling didn't last long. Soon it was like she had a fire coursing through her shoulder and she brought her right hand up to push against it out of instinct. She could feel her warm blood seeping from the wound, she could feel it pulsing through her fingers and down her arm, the crimson hiding underneath the sleeve of her charcoal suit jacket.
"Run, Cindy," Emily heard herself shouting, at least she thought she was shouting. In reality it had barely come out in a whisper. "Go! Now! Find Agent Hotchner," were the last words she uttered before her world faded to black. Later she would remember startled amber eyes gazing down at her in panic, but at the moment, she just wanted to sleep and forget about the pain.
Three days earlier…
Homicide Detective Emily Prentiss was the first on the scene besides the paramedics and uniformed officers. She flashed her NYPD badge and was quickly escorted under the crime scene tape. There were plenty of thoughts running through her mind as she was guided into the apartment complex's lobby, but the one she kept repeating over and over was 'Please don't let it be another one'. She was instructed to follow another uniform to the actual room where the murder had been committed. Emily's steps faltered a little as they approached the open doorway. She had never been hesitant to enter a crime scene since the first time, but now she found herself questioning whether she actually wanted to go in. With a deep breath she finally stepped past the officer and was met with the grisly sight she had been anticipating. Her dark eyes glanced over the room briefly before she turned back to the man beside her and nodded.
Emily moved back out of the room and pulled her phone from its case on her left hip. She hit a key on her speed dial and moved the device to her ear as she waited for the other person to pick up. When he did she gave him a quick apology and paused for a moment before proceeding with the news.
"Mac, we got another one. It's him…"
A/N: So let me know what you think, guys. I'm really excited to get this story rolling but that all depends on whether my fellow readers/writers want me to. So…R&R! :D
PS. For those of you still waiting on an update for "First Encounter", I'm really sorry! I'll try to get another chapter up in the next couple of weeks but with school and my police competition I don't have much time. I haven't abandoned it though!
