Author's Note: This just...came to me. I was daydreaming (about Criminal Minds, of course) and my mind wandered. Out of nowhere, this plot hit me. And I'm glad it did. (: I have been wanting to write a more serious, action-packed story for a while, so here it is. Hope you find it as interesting as I did! Make sure you drop me a line. (; (wink wink cough HINT HINT)

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds (although I really want to).

"Suspect is on foot and visible. Agents Hotchner, Prentiss and Morgan are in pursuit, requesting backup!" Hotch yelled into the earpiece, hoping to get the attention of some officers back at headquarters. At that moment, the unsub, Mark Lennox, glanced behind him and took off running as fast as an antelope being chased by a pack of lions.

"Damn it," Emily said, talking off after him. Barely a second later, she could feel Hotch and Morgan running a step behind her. Lennox, who had raped and brutally murdered five women, was running down the narrow alley behind the bank in which he had been spotted. There were no lights on in the alley, and it was dark outside already; it was almost nine o'clock. As the three agents reached the end of the dark pathway, they were dismayed to discover that the alley split into three directions. And neither one of them had seen whether Lennox had gone left, right, or straight forward. Hotch immediately resumed his position as Unit Chief and said, "Alright. We can't wait for backup, since Lennox is probably already far away from us, and we can't afford to lose him. He already escaped from our custody, and we're not going to make that mistake again. Prentiss, you take left, Morgan, go right, and I'll go straight. Let's go." They took off into their designated locations, separating from the safety of each other's presence, and walking into the darkness which greeted them with open arms.

~.~.~

Hotch slowly made his way down the alley, his gun out and ready at any sign of movement. He scanned the walls, every once and a while glancing behind him. Ever since Foyet, he had become extremely cautious. So cautious that it bordered paranoia.

After walking forward for a couple more yards, he realized that the alley came to a dead end.

"So much for that," Hotch briefly thought before speaking over the earpiece, "Lennox isn't with me. The alley comes to a dead end. Any sign of him? Morgan? Prentiss?"

"Not yet," both Morgan and Emily answered in unison.

~.~.~

Morgan continued his search of the alley, running it over with the bright beam of his flashlight. Unexpectedly, the flashlight went out. He cursed under his breath. "Damn batteries…" He made his way forward, his eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness. At the far end, he was able to make out the bulky silhouette of a Dumpster. There was nothing else in the alley, and Morgan briefly thought, "If Lennox is hiding anywhere, it's behind that bin." He slowly crept forward, his gun at attention. Morgan spun so that he was facing the back of the Dumpster. "Mark Lennox, put your hands…" But Morgan stopped as he realized that no one was there. He was alone in the alley. Or…was he? Something caught his attention in the garbage bin. Something pale white. Something that looked a lot like the leg of a dead body. Calling in to Emily and Hotch, Morgan said, "Hotch. Lennox isn't here…but there's something else you should see." He heard Hotch's rough voice say, "What is it? I'm coming over," and he heard Emily groan in frustration. "My flashlight's batteries just died."

Morgan chuckled with understanding. "Same here, Emily. Any sign of Lennox?"

"Not yet, but there's still a long way for me to go…I'll call in with details if I find anything." There was a pause. "Or anyone."

"Alright, Prentiss. Morgan, I see you. What is it?" Hotch asked, approaching the garbage bin.

"I think we have a dead body, Hotch. Could this be connected to Lennox? He does live in this area…"

Hotch frowned. "Maybe…depends on if it's a man or woman. Where's my flashlight…okay. Wait." Hotch reached out and gingerly touched the leg. He sighed in relief. "It's a mannequin, Morgan."

~.~.~

Emily lurked into the darker half of the alley, with no flashlight to aid her vision. She scanned the walls and saw nothing but remnants of gang graffiti. She sighed and kept walking forward, attentively listening for any sound that would alert her to the unsub's presence. As she came near the end of the alley she shook her head in disappointment. No Lennox. She was about to call it into Hotch and Morgan when she heard the click of a gun behind her. Before she could register the sound, she heard Lennox's deep and leering voice as he greeted her, saying, "Well, well, well. Agent Prentiss. It's so good to see you again."

Emily pushed away her shock and said, without fear, "Mark Lennox. If only I could say the same." Right at that moment, she spun around and punched him in the side of his jaw, and with her other hand she disarmed him, kicking his gun far away into the darkness. He recovered swiftly however, and pushed Emily up against the wall of a nearby building. One large hand came around her neck, applying enough pressure to choke and kill her. With his other hand, he brought out a pocket knife, which he held in front of her, moonlight glinting off its sharp blade. What he didn't know was that in the process, he had turned on her headset and Morgan and Hotch were about to hear his every words.

"I'm going to kill you, you know. You're going to be my sixth, and I'm going to have so much fun killing you. You're so much more beautiful than the others…it's a shame that once I'm finished with you, no one will be able to recognize you." Black dots began to invade her vision. She started gagging, and he pulled her by her hair, throwing her to the ground.

~.~.~

"I'm going to kill you, you know." Hotch and Morgan met each other's eyes as they heard Lennox's voice coming over Emily's radio headset.

"Shit," Hotch murmured, pulling out his gun as Morgan said, "Hell no…", and they both took off towards Emily. They had to make it to her in time…or she would be his sixth victim, just like he had said.

~.~.~

"Your agent friends won't be able to save you, Agent Prentiss. I won't give them that chance. What was it that you said during the interrogation? Oh, right. 'Mr. Lennox, I don't see how a man like you could have possibly killed five women. You're not strong enough. In fact, you look so…weak.'" He smirked as he straddled her waist. "Have I proven you wrong yet?"

Emily tried to catch her breath, but couldn't. She saw her gun lying barely a foot away from her. If only she could reach it…

Lennox continued. "You stupid bitch. You don't even have enough strength to antagonize me, Agent Prentiss. Who's the weak one now?"

He reached forward to rip off her shirt, but was interrupted as Hotch said from behind him, "You are the weak one, Lennox. Get off her, stand up, and put your hands behind your head."

~.~.~

Lennox didn't listen, just stared back as Hotch and Morgan both pointed their guns at him.

"Get. Off. Her." Hotch repeated.

"Why should I? Unless, of course…you're sleeping with her. Is she your dark-eyed beauty, Agent Hotchner? Because if she isn't, I'm making her mine." Lennox answered, turning his attention back to Emily.

"Mark Lennox, this is your last chance. Get off her, get up, and put your hands behind your head. DO IT NOW!" Morgan yelled.

Lennox looked back at them, opened his pocket knife, and smirked.

"Hmm…this is interesting. Which one of them are you sleeping with, Emily? Because I'm sensing a whole lot of alpha male tension going on…"

Right as he turned to look at Emily, she reached for her gun, pistol-whipped him over the head with it, pushed him off her, stood up, and pointed the gun straight at his heart.

"Up against the wall with your hands behind your head. Now, or I shoot." Emily ordered in her most demanding and no-nonsense tone.

"Or we all shoot," Hotch added. Morgan nodded in agreement.

Lennox sighed in defeat as Prentiss grabbed her handcuffs, cuffed him as tight as possible and said in a callous whisper, "Who's the bitch now?" He struggled to free himself but she pushed him forward and read him his Miranda rights…with one small modification.

"Mark Lennox, you're under arrest for the murders of five women, and for the assault and attempted murder of a federal agent. You have the right to remain silent. So shut the hell up."

~.~.~

As backup came and Morgan roughly escorted the unsub to the squad car, Hotch approached a still shaken Emily.

"Prentiss, I think you should go get checked out. The ambulance is waiting."

"I'm fine, Hotch. It's nothing." But as they walked into a lighter clearing nearby the ambulance, she winced in pain.

"What's wrong?" Hotch immediately asked.

"Nothing, I –"

But Hotch interrupted her. "Emily, you're bleeding." He tentatively pulled back her sleeve to reveal a small yet deep cut that came from Lennox's pocket knife. "He must have stabbed her when she pistol-whipped him," Hotch thought bitterly.

She looked down at her wound and sighed. In the midst of all the blue and red police lights, Hotch was able to make out several shadows on Emily's neck. Not shadows…bruises. Bruises were already forming on her pale skin.

"That son of a bitch," Hotch murmured, anger building up within him.

"Emily," he said, effectively stopping her. She glanced back at him, and the look in her eyes only proved his thoughts. She looked so tired, so…worn. "Please."

There was a long pause in which they just stared at each other, but finally Emily gave in and nodded her head, slowly making her way to the ambulance.

Hotch watched her walk away, and he saw his usually bright and tenacious agent become unraveled. He knew that she was strong, but this was something that she just couldn't compartmentalize. "She could have died," he thought. "But she didn't, and that is what counts." It would take a while for her to heal, but with the help of him and the rest of the team, she would be able to persevere. After all, that's what friends are for; being there unconditionally for people who mean the world to them.

And with their help, their incredibly strong friend would be back to normal in a couple of days.

He was sure of it.

~.~.~

"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." ~ Friedrich Nietzsche