(Hotch's POV)

-Minutes later-

I gripped the steering wheel of the SUV tightly as Rossi talked with Cleveland PD on the phone. Prentiss sat in the back.

"Ok, thank you," Rossi muttered and hung up the phone. He turned to me. "Cleveland PD said that the plane took off about two minutes ago."

"That means we have just over an hour to get ready for them when they arrive," I said, doing quick calculations in my head.

"What's the plan?" Prentiss asked from the back.

I tilted my head. "It depends if they know if JJ is an agent or not. If they don't know, they'll call local MPD and talk with them. If they know, they'll probably communicate and make any demands with us. We get as much information of them as we can over the phone. Accents, dialect, anything that'll tell us where they're from or who they are."

"I assume you want me to do the negotiations?" Rossi asked.

"Yes. Whether they call local PD of us, you'll be handling negotiations with them." Rossi nodded understandingly. I knew he didn't want to and wasn't comfortable with it in this situation. If he said one wrong thing, JJ could pay a large price. But he knew it was part of the job. We sat in more silence for a while before we pulled into the back of the airport, near all the runways.

"What do you think they'll do if they find out JJ is an agent?" Prentiss asked solemnly. I gripped the wheel even tighter, turning my knuckles pale.

"I don't know. Hopefully, they don't know yet and don't find out," I mumbled and parked the car at the runway.

-Meanwhile-

(JJ's POV)

My ears popped as the plane finally flew at a steady altitude. I shifted uncomfortably at the slight pain and felt Gabriel shifting next to me, too.

"What's wrong?" I asked quietly. He looked around a little more and finally turned to me.

"The rifles they're using," he muttered almost silently. "All M4s. All five of them have the same guns."

"So?"

"M4 Carbines. Those are the assault rifles the security uses here. People that can buy any just about any rifle normally wouldn't choose the Carbine. Not always as reliable as others. So, why wouldn't they buy better guns?" I shook my head, not really understanding what he was getting at. He leaned in closer and whispered in my ear. "I think at least one of our guys is a security guard." My eyes widened a little as it made sense. The sound of a gun cocking next to me snapped me out of my train of thought and I looked next to me. One of the masked men had his gun aimed in between Gabriel's eyes and held his finger off the trigger. He had some type of former experience.

"What were you whispering about?" He hissed at Gabriel. Gabriel just shook his head.

"Nothing."

The masked man looked at me sharply. "What did he say to you?"

"Nothing," I stuttered out, not being able to some up with an excuse right away. The masked gunman looked from me to Gabriel, and back. His arm shot out and roughly grabbed my hair. He tugged up and I stood up to avoid him from pulling it harder. Gabriel was about to stand up, but stopped just as I felt the nozzle of the gun press against my head. The gunman carefully walked me to the part of the plane just outside the cockpit. Two gunmen stood there. I could tell by his build that one of them was the leader. He laughed once he saw me being dragged toward him.

"What'd she do now, Ace?" He asked the man holding on to me. Ace. I got a name, or, at least a nickname.

"Her and that guy in the front row of coach are trouble. They were whispering and kept looking from me to Jinx, and also at Vex. Probably hatching some sort of plan." The leader stepped toward me a little and I tightened my body instinctively.

"What were you guys talking about?" He asked. I stayed silent this time, still not thinking of a good lie or excuse. The leader looked from Ace to the other man and laughed again. "Well, whatever. If they were planning something, it's done now. Put her in the back of the plane. I'll be back there soon."

Ace shifted his stance a little and shifted his grip to my arm. "What?" Ace asked, his voice dry.

"Bring her to the back of the plane. Have Vex go with you and restrain her," the leader said, annoyed that he was repeating himself. "and I'll be back there soon." The leader looked over at the man that was with him when Ace and I walked up. "Fletch, go watch the passengers with Jinx while they get her back there." The other man, Fletch, nodded and walked back to where the passengers sat. The leader kneeled down and went into a cabinet, pulling out a small box. He was about to open it but looked over at Ace, who was still planted where he was before.

"Go!" The leader shouted. Ace jumped and quickly shoved me out the doorway and into the first class aisle. I quickly turned my head back to see the leader. The box was open and he was holding a small container filled with an orange liquid. In his other hand, he held a syringe. He inserted the syringe into the vial of the liquid and drew it up, a smile creeping on his face when he was doing so.