DISCLAIMER: I own nothing belonging to Criminal Minds.
Chapter One
A swinging lantern creaked back and forth from the ceiling as Emily's eyes slowly fluttered open. Her head felt fuzzy and it was throbbing. She could feel the chains that were wrapped tightly around her ankles and the chair she was sitting in. The handcuffs painfully dug into her wrists.
"I'm sorry I had to do this to you Emily. It was the only way."
Emily tried to lift her head look at her captor but she couldn't muster up any strength. He had drugged her.
"Soon we can be alone and have everything we ever dreamed of."
"Please….don't do this." Emily said flinching when she felt him run his hand through her hair.
"It's the only way." He whispered into her ear.
Emily Prentiss was a strong woman but she couldn't help but feeling hopeless at the moment. No one knew where she was or even that she was missing. Tears trickled down her face and she stifled a whimper of pain.
"Don't cry." He told her running the hunting knife under her chin. "Everything will be all right."
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2 Weeks Earlier
Emily laughed as Morgan playfully threw a French fry at her as they sat in the small diner. SNAP. She ran her hand through her dark brown hair pushing it over her left shoulder. SNAP. She smiled when JJ teased Reid and made him blush. SNAP. She bit her lower lip in amusement as Garcia whispered something dirty into Morgan's ear. SNAP.
He sat in his car finishing off another roll of film on her. He had been watching her all morning and all afternoon constantly taking pictures. She had absolutely no idea. When she looked out the window of the diner and he put down his camera and sped off not wanting to be discovered.
"Earth to Em, come in Em." Garcia said trying to get Emily's attention.
"Huh? Oh sorry I guess I just sort of drifted off for a second?"
"She was day dreaming about me." Morgan joked sending a wink her way.
"You wish." Emily threw a French fry back at him.
"What were you thinking about?" JJ asked.
"Nothing really, just that it's nice to actually have two days off without any serial killers and mad men."
JJ's cell phone started ringing. She let out a disappointed sigh. "Well it looks like two days is the limit, it's Hotch."
"Of course it is." Emily sighed.
"Don't serial killers ever sleep?" Garcia asked leaning her head back against the booth.
"Actually they have a cooling off period." Reid said. "Sometimes is can last weeks or even years. They BTK killer went…"
"We know kid." Morgan said.
Emily laughed at the disappointed look on Reid's face and JJ came back to the table.
"We got a body." She said.
Everyone let out little groans and threw their money onto the table paying for their food.
"Back to the daily grind." Garcia said as they all slid out of the booth.
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"Michael Tanner's body was discovered late last night by his friend. He was bound and gagged and his throat was slit." JJ said passing around case files to the team.
"He tortured him for a few hours before he finally ended his suffering. There were third degree burn marks on his forearms and upper abdomen." Rossi said looking over a crime scene photo.
"I think whoever did this had a grudge against Michael Tanner." Morgan said.
"Our unsub really wanted this guy to feel pain." Reid showed the autopsy photos to the team. "It looks like he beat him relentlessly around the ribcage and back with some type of blunt object."
"You've been awfully quiet." Hotch said looking over at Emily.
"I knew him." She said sadly staring down at Michael Tanner's lifeless face.