Paralyzing Fear

JJ heard the man's voice echo in her head: "let the game begin". This was a game…her best friend's life was a game. Anger boiled in her chest and she gritted her teeth together so hard that she heard a grinding sound. She stood abruptly from her seat and left the room, feeling the worried, glassy stares from her team and taking her hand from Garcia's caring one. JJ's livid eyes burned with oncoming tears and she just had to get away from the overly kind faces in the conference room. When she got to her office, she slammed the door shut and took a deep breath, trying to breathe. This just couldn't be happening. Emily was the best agent she had ever worked with and the thought of her having to go through any of this horror made her want to puke. Remembering what had happened to Elle made her stomach even more uneasy. Elle had been so strong…until that. She was emotionally broken and would never be the same again. JJ couldn't and wouldn't let that happen to Emily. She set her jaw straight and took a deep breath, determined.

***

Emily saw the camera's red, blinking eye glaring at her. She had overheard her captor's conversation with Hotch…She knew that the game had begun and that her team could see her now. Whatever happened, however horrible it may be, she had to be strong. She just couldn't let her team see her exhibiting any kind of weakness. Emily remember herself watching as Reid was being tortured and how horrific it had been to sit and watch those things happening to her friend, not being able to do a thing to stop it. She promised herself to not let that happen…she would show no pain in order to let the team know that she was okay…even if she wasn't.

She had to wonder what her team was doing to find her. It bothered her immensely to be blind—on the other side of the badge. It was a helpless, dark, and lonely feeling. It was hard for her to believe that she wasn't really alone…that there were people out there who cared for her and were working non-stop to find her. She had a hard time believing that she was going to make it out of this alive. Reliving every furious hit and bone-crushing grasp made it impossible to think of anything but death. Her head throbbed in short bursts of intense pain every few seconds and she could feel her broken ribs as she stretched in the hard, metal chair she was confined to.

"Emily Prentiss." Emily half-opened her weary, mock fearless eyes when she heard her captor's presence. She faced him, trying to hold herself high and show that she was completely unafraid.

"So…where shall we begin?" His voice was like nails running down a chalkboard. Emily decided not to speak to him. His eyes grew angry and his face reddened, matching his beard.

"Answer me!" He screamed obscenities at her and threw a few terrible punches, catching her in the jaw and nose. The first thing, besides the pain, was the indication of some sort of mood disorder…if he was bipolar, then she was in a lot of trouble. Blood poured profusely from her nose and Emily controlled her emotions as to not show the horrible pain radiating from her broken nose and fractured jaw. Her eyes spun and she tried to focus on the livid face in front of her, but as soon as the world stopped moving, she saw the fist again. She never even had time to brace herself from the attack, but she was kind of grateful for that so she wouldn't have to cover her fear. In a matter of moments, blackness seeped over her vision and she was out.

***

JJ walked as calmly as possible from her office toward Garcia's, so she could see how Emily was doing. When she opened the door, she wished she hadn't even left her office. The whole team was there, only it was deathly silent. The only noise was coming from one of Garcia's speakers. Her face fell. It was Emily; she was refusing to speak to the unbelievably huge man. JJ didn't want to look but she couldn't take her eyes away. The man screamed and threw his fists at her face as hard as he could. They heard an awful snap and everyone cringed. JJ could hear Garcia's quiet sobs, but was too staggered by the scene in front of her that she couldn't find the strength to comfort her dear friend. When it seemed like the man was finished with his torture for the moment, the anger filled his features once again and he punched her so hard that the chair fell backward, Emily's head cracking on the pavement.

JJ squeezed her eyes shut and gasped; knowing Emily was definitely out cold after that one. Morgan's muscles were shaking with fury and his knuckles were white as he gripped Garcia's chair. Garcia buried her face in her hands and cried as Hotch had a fiery rage in his eyes. Rossi looked down and shook his head, rubbing his temples. Reid's eyes were wide in horror as he stared at the screen. Emily was his friend and like a protective big sister to him. He didn't even know how to react to any of this; he swallowed, holding back tears. JJ tried not to let tears escape her eyes, but couldn't help a couple that fled too quickly for her to stop. She wiped them away, looking back up to the screen. Emily lay unmoving on the ground and the evil, psychopathic man looked over to the camera and smiled menacingly, laughing.

"Oh….I forgot. Every time she doesn't cooperate with me, she pays. Don't forget our agreement. You must watch. One of you at all times has to be watching…don't think I can't tell if you're not." His voice broke and he cleared it. They couldn't really see his face; it was only a silhouette against the dimly lit dump of a room.

"Take care…talk to you soon." He walked away and jerked Emily's chair to its feet, then out of the room. Emily's face was swollen and bruised, blood trickling down the side of her face and pouring from her nose. This was horrible. Morgan ran out of the room, punching the wall on the way and everyone jumped. Garcia sobbed and JJ walked shakily forward, putting a distant, comforting hand on her shoulder. Her eyes were red and wide with shock, her gaze still locked on her best friend's damaged face. Hotch stepped out of the room, a silent furiousness permeating through the room and Rossi followed. Reid stood in shock for a few moments until JJ looked up to his child-like eyes. She softened hers and put a warm hand on his arm, guiding him out of the room; he didn't need to see any more of this. JJ pulled up a chair and sat in complete silence next to Garcia, guessing that she was on the first shift to watch. They wouldn't leave Garcia alone to watch this horrific video feed; that was cruel.

Hotch followed Morgan to his desk and stood at a safe distance behind him, Rossi doing the same. Reid didn't follow them, but instead sat at his desk as he avoided looking at Emily's.

"Morgan…we need another angle. Do you think you could come up with something with Reid?" Morgan had calmed a little and he nodded as he glanced at Reid.

"Doesn't Emily's mother need to know about this? What about Strauss?" Morgan voiced a worry that hadn't even occurred to Hotch, and he grimaced, shaking his head.

"You work with Reid. I'll call her mother…and Rossi, could you leave a message with Strauss' secretary?" Rossi nodded and the work ensued.

***

Emily Prentiss was sure she was dead. Surely that punch had ended her life. She felt like she was hovering right above the brink of pain that she assumed was coming soon…that was; if she was still alive. Slowly and painfully the pounding slithered back into the forefront of her thoughts and it felt like her head would explode. Squeezing her eyes as tightly as she could, she groaned. Why didn't she just answer the stupid man? Cooperation was not part of her vocabulary when it concerned her kidnapper. It felt like there was a knife stabbing constantly into the back of her head. Disoriented, Emily opened her eyes and looked around. She swore under her breath: she was still here. Her team hadn't found her yet and there was sure to be more pain in store for her. Looking at the blinking red light, she wanted to beg her team to come save her…but she knew how much that would just make the situation worse so she pushed that foolish idea away.

"Emily, are you feeling more cooperative after your nap?" The huge man walked in, holding an ominous bag; she was sure she didn't want anything to do with whatever was inside. Emily squinted, the pain making her dizzy.

"What do you want with me? What do you gain from having me here?" Emily's voice was rough and just above a whisper. She smoothed her expression of pain to nothing and waited for an answer.

"Oh, Emily. I'm sure you know what I want from you." He sat immediately across from her.

"I assure you that I don't." Venom crept into her tone and she forced it back down again, feeling a pang through her head. The man cocked his head to the side and continued not breaking the silence.

"What's your name?" Emily needed to make some kind of a connection with him so she could somehow save herself.

"Oh! How incredibly rude of me. My name is James Ford…you can call me whatever you like." His eyes were pleasant for the few seconds he explained his name, but as soon as he stopped talking, his eyes flashed blood-red.

"Ford...Did your mom name you that?" She was digging for something; anything. His breathing became labored and Emily's eyes widened. She was going to regret that.

***

"Garcia, look. Emily's awake." JJ's voice gained some color.

"Wow. She's gotta be hurting so much right now." Her voice was soft and sad.

"Gosh. Look at her face. I bet her skull is fractured. She hit her head really hard." JJ quieted her tone and a dull grey overtook it.

"She's talking to him. Oh no. Emily, why'd you do that?" Garcia heard Emily's mistake. JJ knew why she asked, but this was not good. They both watched nervously as the man named Ford picked up the bag. JJ didn't want to know what was in the bag, and from Emily's dreading eyes, she didn't either.

From the bag, Ford pulled out some sort of machine. Emily's eyes were wild with trepidation which mirrored JJ and Garcia's. A couple of minutes ago, JJ had texted the rest of the team that they might want to get in there and some of them were showing up, not knowing what was happening. Silence soaked the air as Ford picked up two clamps. He attached one to the leg of the metal chair and one to the unknown machine. Emily guessed what it was and it showed on her face. Fear wasn't supposed to be shown, but this wasn't anything she was prepared for. The beatings she could handle….but this……..

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–soccergirlmich--