*Beep* *Beep* *Beep* *Beep* Jane's alarm clock rudely woke her from a sound sleep. 'Ugh! It is way too early to get up' she thought as she hit the snooze button. It was the third week into Jane's senior year of high school and while she should have been full of youthful energy, her dad had recently given her more leeway into choosing her own bedtime and as a result she had stayed up very late the night before. She gave serious thought to skipping her morning run, but finally decided to get up. She quickly changed into her running clothes, put a baseball cap on over her short, bobbed hair and made her way downstairs.
Her father was already in the kitchen eating his breakfast. He had a meeting with some unit chiefs from other departments that morning and he wanted to get to the office early to prepare for it. He looked up from his cereal as she came into the room.
"Morning Sweetie, did you sleep well?"
"Pretty well, although the thunder woke me up a few times. You?" She asked him as she grabbed a granola bar and some juice.
"Not bad, but the storm woke me up too. Going for your morning run?" Jane had started her morning run when she was a freshman in high school. Hotch knew it helped her clear her head before school in the mornings and he encouraged it, he even ran with her a few times per week.
"Yup." She responded, finishing her juice. "I'm going to be home late tonight, probably not until 700pm. I have track practice and then I have to go to the library to research a paper that I have due later this semester."
"That's fine." Hotch responded, putting his empty bowl in the sink. "I'll hold dinner for you. I've got to get going, I need to do some prep work for my meeting. Have a good day at school."
"You have a good day at work. Stay safe." She said this to him every morning; she worried about him getting hurt while on duty.
"I will. Love you."
"Love you too, dad." Jane said as Hotch left for work. Jane finished her granola bar and left for her run.
**********
Jane loved running in the morning, it gave her a chance to think without any distractions. As she ran her two miles she thought about the fun she would have during her senior year of high school. She thought about her boyfriend Andy and the plans they had this weekend and she thought about what colleges she would apply to for the next year.
Jane was still deep in thought when she reached the back door of her house. While she was unlocking the door, she was mentally debating the advantages and disadvantages of going to an out of state college when she felt someone grab her upper right arm. She took a deep breath to scream when she felt a cloth over her face. She struggled for another twenty seconds before the chloroform took effect and she passed out.
**********
After his meeting Hotch was talking with Dave in the hallway between their offices when he heard his desk phone ring. Dave followed him as he went to answer the phone.
"Agent Hotchner."
"Mr. Hotchner, this is Pam Johnson calling from St. Andrews Academy."
Hutch's eyebrows furrowed, that was Jane's school. "What can I do for you, Ms. Johnson?"
"Mr. Hotchner, Jane did not show up for school today, did you forget to call and tell us she is sick?"
Hotch felt his blood pressure rise. "No, she's not sick; I'm not sure what's going on. I will check into this and get back to you Ms. Johnson. Thank you for letting me know."
"Thank you Mr. Hotchner."
Hotch ended the call and immediately dialed Jane's cell phone…it went straight to voicemail.
"Damn." Hotch said, hanging up his phone.
"What's going on Hotch?" Dave asked him, concerned.
"Jane didn't show up for school today. I hope she didn't decide to skip."
Dave thought for a minute. "That's never happened before, has it?"
"No and it better not be happening now!" Hotch replied, picking up his car keys. "I have an hour before my next meeting; I'm going home to see if she's there, she might be sick or something."
"Do you want me to come with you?" Dave asked. Something didn't feel right about this situation.
"No, it won't take me long." Hotch said and then left for the parking garage.
**********
When Hotch got to his house twenty minutes later, the first thing he noticed was that Jane's car was still in the garage. 'She probably got sick and forgot to call me.' Hotch thought as he parked on the street in front of the house. He let himself in the front door, called her name and got no response. He went upstairs to Jane's room and saw that while she wasn't there, her purse was. Hotch started to get a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He went downstairs and looked all around and found no sign of her. Finally he went into the kitchen and noticed that the back door was ajar. He cautiously approached the door, opened it and found Jane's key in the lock and her IPod laying on the ground. He also saw two sets of muddy footprints near the door. One set was large, the other was smaller. He could tell by the footprints that the larger person dragged the smaller person to the end of the driveway where the footprints disappeared.
Fighting the rising feeling of panic, Hotch dialed Dave's number. "Dave, get the team to my house right away. Something's happened."
**********
This is an offshoot of my first story 'A Different Kind of Life.' It takes place in the same AU and Hotch and Jane have had all of the experiences I've written about there (up until Jane turned 17). If you haven't read that story, you may want to read it first.
It is mid-September in this story and Jane is 17 years old.
This is my first foray into a multi-chapter story so please be patient. The title comes from a statistic that says that in the US a child is reported missing every 40 seconds.
Reviews are always welcomed.
