"Make a wish!" Emi cheered as she sat on the end of the desk of the now 24-year-old Spencer Reid. In front of him was a rectangular cake covered with chocolate frosting and decorated with blue and yellow icing. 'Happy Birthday, Reid' was written with yellow icing on one corner, and 24 lit candles were placed on the corner diagonal. The girl giggled as she watched her boyfriend continue to blow the candles that refused to go out.
"Come on, man!" Morgan urged.
"I thought you were full of hot air, Reid," Elle teased.
"Come on, Reid," Morgan laughed as Spencer still continued to attempt to blow out the candles. "How are you suppose give Emi a good time in bed if you can't blow out these candles?"
At those words, Emi started choking on her coffee.
"They're trick candles, Spencer," JJ told him while patting Emi on the back. "They're gonna come back on every time."
"Oh, mommy to the rescue," Morgan teased, rocking Spencer's birthday-cake-hat back and forth.
"Mommy?" Spencer repeated.
Having finally recovered from Morgan's comment, Emi jumped off of Spencer's desk, and gently pushed Morgan away from Spencer. "Okay, break it up, you two." She then turned back to Spencer and hugged the man from behind.
"Happy birthday, Spence," she whispered into his ear.
"Thanks," Spencer said, turning his head to smile at her.
"Alright, you two, save it for the bedroom," Morgan joked, pulling the hat down over Spencer's eyes. Emi playfully glared at Morgan while Spencer pushed the hat back up.
"Hope you like chocolate," JJ said as she began to cut the cake. Elle and Morgan both reached over Spencer to help JJ cut the cake.
Spencer shrunk into his chair, starting to feel a bit claustrophobic. Seeing that, Emi stepped back, pulling his chair with her. Giving her a smile of thanks, Spencer got up from his chair and let Emi sit instead. When she rolled the chair back over to the cake, Spencer walked over to Gideon who was standing a few desks away.
"You having fun?" Gideon asked.
"Yes, definitely. I'm definitely having fun," Spencer replied, sounding slightly sarcastic.
"Make a wish?" the older agent asked, making Spencer look up at the rim of the hat on his head.
"Can I take this hat off?"
Gideon smirked at the request but shook his head. "I wouldn't."
Spencer let out a small smile before the two turned to look back at the other agents crowding around the cake. Spencer's gaze lingered on his girlfriend, and he softly smiled when he saw her laugh.
"I never really saw my birthday as something important," Spencer commented, "But Emi-heh, she claims that it tied with Halloween for her favorite day."
"You two really love each other," Gideon mused as he watched the expression on Spencer's face.
"Yeah," Spencer agreed. "You know, Emi would always insist on doing something on my birthday. It would never be the same though. Sometimes it was simple, like going a bookstore and eating in a cafe, and other times it would so crazy. On my 21st birthday, we went to Las Vegas and went to like 9 casinos. We got kicked out from every single one cause they thought I was cheating."
"What are you going to do this year?" Gideon asked.
Spencer shrugged, "I told her that I wanted to do the planning this year, but I actually don't know what to do."
"Hey Spence," Emi said, making the two agents turn to look at her. She held out a plate. "First piece is for the birthday boy." Spencer smiled and walked over to the girl, his smile turning into a grin when she gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Sorry, guys," Hotch said, making everyone turn to look at him. "the party's over."
"We're going to San Diego," Hotch said as they entered the conference room.
"Not for the surfing, huh?" Morgan assumed.
"They're calling him the Tommy Killer," JJ said.
"6 women raped and murdered in their homes in the last 3 weeks," Hotch said.
"6 in 3 weeks?" Elle repeated.
"That's a short fuse," Gideon commented.
"And getting shorter," Hotch added, "The first 2 were 8 days apart then the next 2 in 2 weeks."
"Rapid escalation. Do you think he's regressing to a psychopathic frenzy?" Spencer asked.
"No, he's too controlled for that," Hotch said before standing up. "See you on the plane."
"Why the Tommy Killer?" Morgan asked before Hotch left the room.
"You know the rock opera?" Hotch asked, making both Spencer and Emi look up in confusion, "This unsub glues the victims' eyes wide open."
Emi shuddered as she looked down at the picture of the dead victims-their eyes wide open and full of terror.
"He wants them to see him," Spencer mumbled.
Emi let out a shaky breath."And feel him," she added.
"Brenda Samms was found yesterday by her children when they got home from school," Hotch read as they all sat on the plane. "She had been strangled with a thin ligature, possibly a wire."
"No weapon left the scene," Elle said.
"Residue on the wrist and mouth indicated that duct was used and then removed," Spencer said.
"Also not found at the scene," Hotch added.
"Brought it with him, took it with him," Elle said.
"He also started leaving messages at the fourth scene," Hotch told them, showing the picture to Elle. "This was on the mirrors.
"Fair lady, throw those costly robes aside. No longer may you glory in your pride. Take leave of all your carnal, vain delight-"
"I've come to summon you away this night," Spencer finished. "It's a ballad from the late 1600s."
"A dialogue between Death and a lady, right?" Emi asked, "She was begging Death to let her live and whatnot."
"Yeah," Spencer confirmed.
"What kind of person knows this ballad?" Elle asked. "Are we looking for a literature professor?"
"Anyone with an internet connection, actually," Spencer told her. "You should see what comes in when you type the word "death" into a search engine."
"Reid, no wonder you can't get a date," Morgan laughed.
"Uh, ouch," Emi said, lightly hitting Morgan's arm, "His girlfriend is right here, you know."
"Reid, you stay on the messages. See if there's a deeper meaning," Gideon ordered.
"It definitely looks like he ransacked the crime scene pretty well," Morgan said, holding up the picture to show everyone.
"A lot of damage, nothing taken," Hotch said.
"The eyes are the thing, the signature," Gideon said, "The behavior that isn't necessary for the murder, but necessary for the emotional release. That's what he's there for."
"There used to be a widely held belief that the eyes record a snapshot of the last thing a person sees before they die," Spencer spouted.
"Yeah, that's right. People used to write poems about talking to death," Morgan said.
"Ballads," Spencer corrected.
Morgan rolled his eyes, "Whatever."
"You think they'll ever run out of new things to do with their victims?" Elle asked.
"Well, finding new ways to hurt each other is what we're good at," Gideon told her.
"Hey." Emi looked up from the case pictures to see Hotch standing over her.
"Are you going to be okay for this case?" the unit chief asked
Emi smiled at him softly. "I think I can handle it."
"Are you sure?" he pressed, "I'm aware of how close to home this case is for you."
"It's not that close," Emi said, "It's only similar in one way, and that was years ago."
"If you feel that you need a break, don't be afraid to ask," Hotch told her.
Emi nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Hotch."
Satisfied with her answer, Hotch went back to his seat, and Spencer gave her hand a small squeeze. Elle looked over at them with confused looks.
"What was that about?" Elle asked.
"It's nothing," Emi said, unconvincingly.
Elle gave her a look. "You're talking to profilers, Emi. We can tell that you're lying."
Emi let out a weak chuckle. "It was worth a try. But seriously, though, it's not a big deal. Like I told Hotch, it happened years ago. I'm over it, now."
Elle nodded, still not convinced, but decided not to press any further. "Alright. Just know that I'm here if you need anyone to talk to."
Emi gave her a small smile. "Thanks."
Task Force Headquarters
San Diego Police Department
The team walked into the station and went their separate ways, not paying attention to the others in the station. Hotch, JJ, and Emi were the only ones that acknowledged the other officers.
A man attempted to greet Elle, but she simply walked past him.
"Sorry, they tend to get tunnel vision when we're on a case," Emi apologized for Elle. She shook the man's hand. "I'm Special Agent Emi Hinata. This is my unit chief, Special Agent Hotchner, and our communications liaison, Agent Jareau."
"Captain Griffith, task force commander," the man introduced, also shaking Hotch's and JJ's hand. "I appreciate you coming out."
"Thanks, hope we can help," Hotch said.
"My name is death. Have you not heard of me? You may as well be mute..." Emi heard Spencer read aloud as she and JJ approached him.
"Creepy, huh?" JJ said.
"Actually, conversations between death and his victims was a fairly popular literary and artistic theme throughout the Renaissance," Spencer said. Emi couldn't help but giggle when JJ gave Spencer a look.
"Yeah, creepy," Spencer agreed.
"It looks like what he's written at the scenes are most of the first three verses of the same ballad," Spencer said to Hotch and Elle, Emi following closely behind.
"Most of?" Hotch repeated.
"It's only one part of the conversation. There's no 'betwixt'," Spencer explains. He got blank stares from Hotch and Elle.
"He means that it's only death speaking. The lady never responds," Emi clarifies.
"Maybe he feels like their bodies are answer enough," Elle suggested.
"Emi!" Emi turned her attention away from the case board and to Hotch. "There may have been another attempt six blocks from here. You and Elle come with me, now."
"Yes, sir."
"Lucky woman," Hotch said to Emi and Elle as they walked into the kitchen.
"You know what, she's probably not feeling so lucky right about now," Elle commented.
"Of course not. Whether you are raped or almost raped, it's still a scary experience that will haunt you forever," Emi said, earning a concerned look from Elle.
"You're absolutely sure about that, Mr. Gordon?" they overheard the captain ask.
"He was black and 6 feet tall," the man being questioned said. "I watched him run out that back door."
"Get a description out in the field A.S.A.P.," Griffith ordered before walking over to the 3 agents.
"Interracial serial sex crimes are rare," Hotch told him.
"Are they impossible?" Griffith asked.
"No."
"Then what's your point?" the captain asked.
"Only to provide you with information," Hotch said. Meanwhile, Emi was observing the victim, watching as the woman's eyes darted around the room, looking at the males with uncertainty.
"I'm gonna go talk to her," Emi said.
"May I ask why?" Griffith asked.
"She's surrounded by men," was her answer. Emi made her way towards the woman, gesturing for Elle to come with her.
"Mrs. Gordon?" Emi called, getting everyone's attention. "Hi, my name's Emi, and this is my friend, Elle."
"Would you like to go outside?" Elle asked.
"It's all right," Emi reassured her when the woman hesitated. "We're just gonna go some place quiet. Maybe the backyard or something like that."
"I really don't know that much about him," Mrs. Gordon said as the three women sat outside.
"Well, you don't have to," Elle said. "Just take a little time to collect your thoughts, to just sit here, breathe."
"You don't want to ask me questions?" the woman asked.
"Not until you're ready," Emi reassured her.
"We'll be right behind that doorway," Elle said, getting up, Emi following her example.
"Do you want me to get you a drink?" Emi offered, "Maybe some tea-it might help you calm down."
"No," Mrs. Gordon declined. Emi nodded and she and Elle started walking to the door.
"I didn't know that he was in the house," Mrs. Gordon suddenly said, making Emi and Elle stop in their tracks. "Is that common?"
Emi and Elle sat back down into their seats in front of the woman.
"Very."
"He slapped me from behind, he pulled me down on the floor," Mrs. Gordon said, telling them what happened. "I tried to scratch him and bite him, but he was so strong. And then my husband came home from work. He screamed, and the man ran out the door."
"He was a black man," Elle tried to clarify.
The woman shook her head, "Bill was sure of it, but I...I only remember his eyes. When we were fighting, I kept staring him right in the eyes. I remember thinking, "if he's gonna kill me then he's gonna have to look at me while he does." And he just kept staring back at me through the ski mask."
"A ski mask," Emi repeated.
"Yeah." at this point, the woman started sobbing and Emi got out of her seat to pull the woman into a hug.
"It's okay. You did a great job," Emi comforted, helping the woman calm down.
Emi, Elle, and Hotch entered the station and rushed over to their team to tell them their newfound information.
"Yeah, the police didn't realize what was happening, he writes his verse, and-"
"-and everyone knows that he was there."
"The offender in this new attempt is a black male," Hotch told them.
"Black male?" Morgan repeated, "That's cross-racial. That doesn't happen."
"Bzzt! Wrong," Emi shouted, "It's just really rare. There was that one guy, Herbert Mullin. He-" she pointed at Spencer to finish her thought.
"He killed 14 different people of completely varying ages, races, and creeds," he finished.
"But there was no sexual component to his crimes," Elle reminded them.
"Dammit, and for a second there, I felt super smart," Emi cursed before remembering something, "Oh yeah, did the attacker wear a ski mask?"
"Yeah," Elle confirmed, "This attacker wore a ski mask."
"Tell 'em we're ready," Gideon said, not looking at the team.
"For a profile?" Morgan asked.
Gideon nodded. "We're gonna make Tommy contact us."
"The unsub brought the weapons with him-tape, glue, wire," Gideon said to the officers in front of him. "He did not leave them at the scene. He took them when he left. He has a kind of killing kit that he carries."
"Organized killers usually have a skilled job, likely technology related which may involve the use of the hands," Hotch continued, "The crime scenes are far enough apart that he needs a vehicle. This will be well kept, obsessively clean, as will be his home. He's diurnal, the attacks occurred during the day so the vehicle may be related to his work, possibly a company car or truck."
"We believe he watches the victims for a time, learns the rhythms of the home, knows his time frame," Morgan added.
"You're not gonna catch him accidentally," Hotch told the officers.
"He destroys symbols of wealth in the victim's homes," Gideon explained, "He harbors envy of and hatred toward people of a high social class. He feels invisible around them."
"Uh-Class is the theme of the poem which he left at the-uh, various crime scenes," Spencer said, stumbling a bit over his explanation. "A-At one point in the poem, the women attempts to bribe death but he doesn't accept it. He says this is the one moment when riches mean nothing-when death comes, the poor and the rich are exactly alike."
"So he's poor?" Griffith guessed.
"Eh, not really," Emi said, shaking her head. "I would say more middle-class. A person that matches America's "lower-class" would stick out in a high-class neighborhood that's highly patrolled. He looks like he belongs there. He may be a technician or something that would fit middle class but look like he needs to be there."
"Why does he glue the eyes open?" Lead Detective Cornelius Martin asked.
"The unsub is an exploitative rapist," Elle, who had entered the room a few minutes ago, explained as she made her way to the front, "Most rape victims will close their eyes during the attack, turn their heads. For some rapists, this ruins the fantasy. For this type of rapist, the goal is more related to the victim watching him than the act itself."
"The verses, the staging, the aggressive language, "I am death," this is a guy who, while being in control of the crime scene, almost certainly feels inadequate in the rest of his life," Hotch explained.
Gideon nodded and stood up. "That's why he couldn't wait for you to figure out what he'd done. Why he needed to make sure all his crimes were counted. His victims, they represent whatever it is that's controlling him and he wants that control back. He is under the thumb of a powerful woman who frightens him. And a final point. He is white."
"We have witnesses that identify him as a black male," Griffith argued.
"You have witnesses that identify the attacker of Mrs. Gordon as a black male," Emi corrected, "That man is not the Tommy Killer."
"Mrs. Gordon's husband came home at the same time that he always does," Hotch told Griffith, "The Tommy Killer would've known that."
"And Mrs. Gordon's attacker wore a ski mask," Elle added, "The unsub knows when he walks into a house he's going to kill the woman who lives there. If you're not leaving any witnesses why wear a ski mask?"
"And he wants the victim to see him, anyway," Morgan said.
"Your attempted rapist is a garden variety disorganized young man," Hotch said."
"as the victim's age goes up, generally the attacker's age goes down," Elle explained, "Mrs. Gordon is about 60, which puts her rapist at about 20."
"and it takes years to develop the level of calm and sophistication that Tommy displays at a crime scene," Gideon said. "The rapist is far too young for that."
"Mrs. Gordon told me that there's a young man who delivers groceries to their home," Elle told the lead detective. "He fits a lot of what we're describing here."
"Great. So we're back to zero on Tommy," the captain said, standing up.
"Not at all," Hotch denied, "May I see you in your office for a moment?"
"This is some way to spend your birthday," Morgan said to Spencer as the officers dispersed. Emi had gone over to Elle and Gideon and was now having a conversation with them.
"It's not ideal, but it's not the worst that could happen," Spencer said with a shrug.
"So, do you and the Mrs. have anything planned?" Morgan asked, smirking.
"First of all, Emi isn't "the Mrs." We're not married," Spencer corrected, causing Morgan to shake his head. "Secondly, I'm actually not sure. She usually has something that we do, but this year I told her I wanted to do the planning."
"And let me guess, you have no idea what to do," Morgan guessed.
Spencer shook his head, "Not a clue."
"And I suppose, just going at it in the bedroom isn't good enough?" Morgan joked.
Spencer blushed and glanced at Emi, causing his face to go even redder. "N-No," Spencer stuttered, "Emi's not the kind of person to want that."
Morgan raised his eyebrows, "So you're telling me that you guys haven't done it, yet?"
Spencer's eyes grew wide, and he turned away, avoiding eye-contact with Morgan. "W-we have..."
Morgan laughed and patted Spencer's back, "My man."
"God, I hate waiting like this," Elle muttered to Emi as they both sat at a desk, staring at the phone. Spencer was also sitting with them, playing with a Rubik's Cube.
"You and me both," Emi mumbled as she fiddled with the scrunchie that was once in her hair.
Earlier that night, Morgan and Elle had found Mrs. Gordon's attacker and arrested him. JJ had told the news reporters that he was connected to the investigation, and now they were all waiting for the unsub to get enraged and contact them.
"Do you think it's weird that I knew that ballad?" Spencer randomly asked them.
Emi gave him a confused look while Elle let out a small laugh.
"I don't know how it is that you know half the things you know, but I'm glad you do," Elle told him.
"What about you?" Spencer asked Emi.
"Is this about what Morgan said on the plane?" Emi asked, waiting for an answer. When Spencer gave her a small nod, Emi sighed, "Spencer, don't let what Morgan said bother you. You know he loves to tease you."
"But is it weird?" Spencer asked again, "Is it weird that I know stuff like this?"
"Of course it's weird," Emi answered, grabbing Spencer's hands, "You're weird! But that's why I love you, and that's why you love me. We're both weird, and we shouldn't let people change that about us."
Elle couldn't help but smile as she watched Spencer and Emi smile at each other. When she noticed a look of admiration and adoration in Spencer's eyes, Elle internally sighed to herself. They were adorable, and Elle could only hope that she will one day find someone who will look at her like that.
Their adorable moment was sadly cut off by Detective Martin suddenly getting up from his chair, waving his hands wildly.
"Line 6, Penelope," JJ said to the woman before saying loudly for Emi, Elle, and Spencer to hear, "Line 6."
Emi quickly connected the phone on their desk to line 6. She put the phone on speaker for everyone to hear just as Gideon and Hotch rushed over.
"You stupid, incompetent sons of bitches!" came the unsub's shouts, "I don't make mistakes. I am death! You hear me?! I am death! You'll see now-Tomorrow, mark my words, you will see and while I'm taking her, I'm gonna be thinking of you."
"Anything?" JJ asked Garcia after the man hang up. After a few seconds, she turned to the rest of the team, her eyes wide. "She said she got nothing."
"Nothing?" Morgan repeated.
"We missed him?" Hotch questioned in disbelief. Emi groaned and buried her face into Spencer's shoulder.
"We have an undercover car for each of your teams and the entire damn department out there, too," Griffith said as he walked over to the gathered agents.
"Remember, a truck," Gideon reminded him. "Maybe a work truck in excellent condition."
The man nodded, "Everyone knows."
"All right, he might make a mistake today," Hotch said, "He's angry, and he probably hasn't done the kind of surveillance he'd like."
"Yeah, well, neither have we," Morgan said, giving Spencer a pat on the back, "Let's go, Reid."
"I'll bring the car around," Elle said, causing Gideon to hand her the keys.
"Emi, walk around and try your best to fit in," Hotch instructed.
"Yes sir," the girl saluted before walking out of the station.
Emi stumbled once again as she lost her balance. To entertain herself a little, Emi decided to try to balance on the edge of the sidewalk. She was currently in front of the house of the fourth victim. Gideon and Elle were a couple houses away.
Unfortunately, unlike the other times where she managed to regain her balance, Emi couldn't catch herself and fell onto the pavement on all fours. She hissed quietly when she felt her knees and palms get skinned. She sat back on the sidewalk as she stared at her skinned palms, thinking back to a memory she had tried her hardest to bury.
"Get on your knees."
11-year-old Emi could only manage to shake her head as she stared at the man in front of her. The man that she had trusted her entire life, to only turn out to be a perverted monster.
"I said, "get on your knees"," the man growled as he walked behind her. He grabbed her hair and pushed her onto the floor.
The little girl couldn't help but let out a small cry as she fell to the ground, skinning her palms and knees in the process.
"Oh, don't be such a big baby," he snapped, "Now, be a good girl and be quiet. Your mommy is in the other room, sleeping, and we don't want to wake her up."
Tears streamed down the small child's eyes as she laid on the floor, unable to do anything to stop the man from continuing on with his actions.
"Don't look over there," the man said, gently turning Emi's head to face the open doorway. "Stare at my room. I want you to remember where I'll be after."
Emi snapped out of her memories when she remembered those last words.
"Where he'll be after," Emi mumbled to herself as she stared at the victim's house in front of her. Instinctively, she got to her feet, ignoring the stings of pain, and made her way into the house. She walked over to the bedroom where the victim's body was found and stared at the bed.
"The closing of eyes sometimes ruins the fantasy," Emi said aloud to herself. "But why bother gluing the eyes open if you're not gonna make them look at you."
Without thinking, Emi got onto the bed, forgetting about her bleeding knees and palms, and laid in the same position that the victim had been in. As she laid there, her eyes fell to the window and to the telephone lines that were directly in her line of sight. Realizing the answer, Emi sat back onto the bed just as Gideon and Elle entered the room. She stared at the two as she voiced her realization.
"He wanted to them to see him afterward."
"Office of unfettered omniscience," Garcia said from Emi's phone. "Penelope Garcia is in. Speak, oh fortunate one."
"Hi, Garcia," Emi said as she, Gideon, and Elle walked out of the room and towards the stairs.
"Oh, hello, Emi!" Garcia said, cheerfully. "How's our sweet, little cinnamon roll, today?"
Emi smiled, instantly feeling better. Talking to Garcia always somehow managed to cheer her up, no matter how bad the situation was. "I've been better. Anyways, could you get into the phone repair records in San Diego for me?"
"Oh, but of course!" The sounds of typing keyboards could be heard. "Anything for my adorable, little panda bear. Who're you looking for?"
"Uh, a repairmen cross-referenced with the murders in San Diego?" Emi requested, looking at Gideon and Elle for confirmation. After receiving nods from them, Emi turned back to the phone with a little more confidence. "Yeah-um, it could be four or five days prior? Can you see if you find any common names?"
"Total cake. Stay one line."
"He's a phone technician, Hotch," Gideon said into his phone as the group exited the house. "Police are looking for someone walking around the neighborhood in broad daylight. Who notices a phone guy up on a pole?"
"He can watch for husbands leaving for work, watch for police patrols, know when the neighborhood's quiet," Hotch mumbled.
"He knows when he'll have plenty of time," Gideon said as they crossed the street. "He can even tap into a phone line to make sure someone's home. How about routing a call through 25 substations? Backyard? Hey, he's just looking for a pole. Got tape? Course he does. Wire? He's a repairman."
"Sounds right, Jason."
"It is right, and we have his name," Gideon said, motioning for Emi to get into the back seat.
"Hey, Gideon? Good work," Hotch complimented.
"Oh, it wasn't me," Gideon denied, looking into his car. In the back seat sat Emi, who was currently getting her skinned palms treated by Elle. "This was all Emi."
When Emi's phone rang, she was quick to answer it. "Emi here."
"Frank Graney is on service calls in the area of Orange and Chandler," Spencer told her.
"Thanks, Spence," Emi thanked, ending the call before repeating the information to Gideon and Elle.
"Get a hold of Hotch and tell him to bring the team and any S.D. Cops he can round up," Gideon ordered, making a sharp U-turn.
They quickly found a company truck and Gideon hastily parked in front of it.
"This is his truck," Gideon said as Hotch drove up to them. "Fan out. Go through yards, look at the telephone poles. He's around here-Emi, stay with me."
Emi and Gideon walked around the area until they found a backyard with the gate left open. Hearing the sounds a crying child, Emi moved to run in, but Gideon quickly held her back, shaking his head to tell her that it would be a bad idea.
Gideon slowly walked into the backyard and gestured Emi to follow him. Together, they walked through the backyard and into the house. When he saw the tool belt on the table, Gideon quickly pulled out his gun. Emi, on the other hand, went straight for the crying child.
"Let me out," the boy cried, "let me out!"
"Shh, it's okay," Emi whispered, moving the high-chair's tray away. After quietly placing it on the counter, she unbuckled the seat belt and picked up the boy, placing him on her hip. "We're gonna save your momma."
Meanwhile, Gideon had pulled out his phone. "875 Orange, Hotch. Back door."
"You want me to come?" Emi asked, rocking the child.
"No, take care of the boy," Gideon ordered, "and when the others come, tell them that I'm upstairs."
It was about 2 or 3 minutes later when Hotch and Elle arrived. By then, Emi managed to calm the boy down and was feeding him some applesauce.
"They're upstairs," she informed them.
They both nodded and pulled out their guns before dashing away.
Hearing more loud footsteps, Emi looked up at the ceiling before looking back at the little boy. "I think it's safe to say that they caught him. What do you think? Wanna go check on Mommy?"
Nodding quickly, the child raised his arms, and Emi picked him up. She carried him to the foot of the stairs just as Hotch brought Franklin Graney to the top.
"This little guy, here, wants to see his Mommy," Emi called out to Hotch, boosting the said child up a bit so he would be in a more comfortable position. "Is it safe for me to bring him up?"
Hotch nodded, "Yeah."
Smiling, Emi turned to the boy on her hip, "You see? Mommy's safe." With that, Emi started walking up the stairs. As she passed Hotch and Granley, Emi made sure to shield the boy away from the criminal. They walked towards the bedroom and heard the cries of the mother.
"My baby! Where's my baby?!"
"He's right here, and he's fine, ma'am," Emi said, walking into the doorway. Seeing her son, the mother started to cry again, causing the child to also start crying.
"Thank you," the mother sobbed, taking the baby out of Emi's arms and into her own. "Thank you, so much."
"Hey," Emi looked up from her book to see Elle taking a seat next to her on the plane. "How you feelin'? You look a little shaken up."
"Yeah, I am," Emi admitted.
"I know, I shouldn't pry," Elle started, "but does it have something to do with what Hotch said earlier this morning?"
Emi opened her mouth to speak but closed it in hesitation. Letting out a shaky breath, Emi nodded. "Yeah."
"What happened?" Elle asked, "I mean, you don't have to tell me if you're not comfortable, but it might help to tell someone."
"Yeah, I suppose so," Emi agreed. "When I was younger...I...I was sexually assaulted...many times. Um, it was my father, and I was 10."
Elle gasped, covering her mouth. "Oh my God."
Emi chuckled weakly, "I mean...it wasn't...it wasn't my real father-he died when I was 3. It was my step-father that did it. I-It...It happened for over a year, but one day, one of my brothers, Daichi, he came home earlier than expected and saw it. He was horrified. He called the police, and my step-father was soon arrested. He's in jail, now-with a life sentence.
"My mom had actually met Michael, my new step-father, a few years before and went to him for support after my old one was sent to jail. Their close friendship developed into something more, and before you know it, it was a year, they got married, and we moved to Las Vegas," Emi finished, her eyes glancing her boyfriend, who was currently playing chess with Gideon.
"I'm fine, now," Emi reassured Elle after seeing the concerned look on the woman's face. "The incident made me stronger, and if I had to be honest, if that never happened, I'd probably be here-where I am now."
Elle smiled and grabbed the girl's hands. "Well, fine or not fine, you are only human and will have moments where you want to cry about it. Does anyone else know about this?"
Emi shook her head. "Only you, Spencer, and Hotch know."
"Then, if you ever need a girl to talk to, I'll be here," Elle said, making Emi smile.
"Thanks."
Meanwhile, Spencer and Gideon were concentrated on their chess game.
"Oh, I almost forgot," Gideon said, digging through his bag. "I have something for you."
"Oh, yeah?" Spencer asked, still concentrated on the game.
"Forgot to give it to you at the party," Gideon said, handing him a blue box.
"But you don't give birthday presents," Spencer said. Gideon simply smiled and Spencer opened the box to reveal two tickets. "Les Misérables?"
"State box," Gideon explained.
"Thank you so much," Spencer said, smiling.
"Ever seen a Broadway?" Gideon asked, and Spencer shook his head.
"Uh-no. I mean, unless you count the school musicals that Emi were in," Spencer admitted.
"You're gonna love it," Gideon said.
"We are," Spencer corrected, "You're coming with me, right?"
Gideon shook his head. "You said you needed something to do on your birthday with Emi. I remember she told me once that she's always wanted to see Les Misérables."
Spencer smiled at the man in front of him and got up from his seat. But before he went over to Emi, he stared at the chess board and moved a piece. "Checkmate." Gideon looked at Spencer in shock before laughing as Spencer walked over to his girlfriend-who was still chatting with Elle.
"Hey, Emi," Spencer said, sitting down next to her. Smirking, Elle sent the girl a look before getting and walking over to JJ.
Emi rolled her eyes at Elle and turned to face Spencer. "Hey, Spence. How was your game?"
"Uh, I actually won," Spencer said, proudly.
"Oh, I'm so proud of you!" Emi said, hugging him.
"Yeah," Spencer agreed, hugging her back. "So, uh-you know how we always do something for my birthday?"
"Yeah, and this year you said you wanted to do the planning," Emi remembered.
"Yes, well, Gideon actually bought us tickets," Spencer said, handing her the tickets, "To a musical called-"
"Les Misérables?!" Emi gasped, staring at the tickets. "Oh my god, yes!"
"That was so beautiful," Emi cried, wiping away some stray tears. "What'd you think?"
"It wasn't exactly accurate to the book," Spencer said, "And there were moments when the singers were off-key."
Emi giggled, slipping her arm through Spencer's. "It's a live musical, Spence, and if the musical was going to be straight from the book, we would be there for at least 10 hours."
"I suppose," Spencer complied.
Emi rolled her eyes and hugged Spencer's arm, "Well, thank you."
Spencer gave her a confused look. "Gideon was the one that got us the tickets."
"Not for that, silly."
"Then for what?"
Emi leaned up and pecked Spencer on the cheek. "For holding back on your comments and criticism. Don't worry, as soon as you get home, you can rant about it all you want. Your welcome."
Spencer rolled his eyes and got onto their motorcycle. "Oh, what would I do without you?"
"You would be empty inside and unable to function," Emi joked, getting on behind Spencer. She grabbed Spencer's helmets and placed it on his head, but doing the same for herself. "Admit it, I'm your life source."
"Right," Spencer said, sarcastically, "And here I thought, you were more of a parasite sucking out my life source."
Emi gasped and lightly smacked his shoulder. Laughing, she then, wrapped her arms securely around his waist. Spencer started the motorcycle, riding into the night and back to their apartment.
"Happy Birthday, Spencer."