Chapter 6
They stormed into the steel and concrete layer of Marquel Jacks, all they found were long winding hallways that bled to rooms filled with things about his daughter; Anabell. All that stood in the rooms staring in shock at the girl's always haunted, pained eyes.
"She looks broken," JJ commented quietly looking at a picture where the girl had a forced smile on her face.
"She's more broken than most," Emily said with a loud sigh.
Analia inhaled deeply as her vision stopped blurring. Her heart steadied, as did her breathing, but with each breath pain shot up and down her rib cage. One of her ribs was broken. But she couldn't stop breathing, not yet.
Morgan walked down the winding corridors; his firearm raised. He made quick work of looking into the rooms on either side of him. Finding his daughter was pressing a heavy weight onto his heart.
'Where are you baby girl,' he thought frantically as he found a door to another hall.
Foot steps. That's the sound that came to her ears as she struggled to keep herself from drifting into unconsciousness. Could it be her father coming to save her, or was Marquel back to finish her off?
Taking her chances she heaved a large breath into her bruised lungs she called for her father; her real father.
"Dad! ... Dad help!"
Derrik heard the faint cries coming from the end of the hall. With his earpiece, he alerted the others of his team that he had a sign of his daughter.
"I found her," he said relief flooding his voice.
"We'll be right there," Hotch said into the radio as Derrik rushed down the hall to where his daughter's voice came from.
She was tired, so very tired. Analia hoped that he could hear her, save her.
"Dad!" She croaked loudly, her throat felt rough and scratchy.
"Analia," her father's voice called to her and she smiled.
She always knew that her dad would save her. That he said he was there for, to keep her safe. She wanted to yell once more, but her throat wouldn't let her. It closed on her slowly only allowing her breathe.
Derrik took a step back from where his daughter's voice came from; lifting his leg, he kicked the door open and raced inside. The sight that greeted him almost brought tears to his eyes; there Analia was curled into a corner looking battered and bruised.
"Analia," he began but the words died on his tongue. He couldn't say anything to her.
She looked to Derrik; her father and cried. Too weak to stand on her own. Scooping her up from the floor Derrik held her close to his chest and walked out the room taking her away from the pain that she had to endure for the past week and a half.
The other agents looked to Morgan as he carried his daughter; they smiled to him as he carried up down the hall and up the stairs. The tension and anxiety this case had brought seemed to be lifted from their shoulders.
"She's alive," Emily said with a sigh.
"Thank god for that," Rossi said as he turned away and trudged up the stairs with the other agents following closely behind.
Slowly she was getting her voice back; it still hurt to talk though.
"Dad," she muttered quietly, her throat scratchy as she rested her head on Derrik's shoulder.
"It's alright baby girl, daddy's here," he replied taking her upstairs.
She started crying again, burying her face into his neck; finally she felt safe again. He carried out of the house and to the awaiting ambulance parked in the driveway. Carefully he handed her to the paramedics who placed her onto her a stretched with great care. But before he could hop into the ambulance, a hand clapped his shoulder gently. He turned his head to see Hotch looking at him.
"Morgan," Hotch said as he looked to Derrik.
"Yea Hotch," Derrik Morgan responded his mouth settling into a flat line.
"You're a good father," the older man told him sincerely.
"Thanks," he replied a small smile crawling onto his face as he hopped into the ambulance his daughter was in.
Derrik looked at his daughter a tear sliding down his cheek. He never thought his daughter; his little girl would go through some of the horrible things he'd seen before.
"I'm okay dad," she said weakly taking hold of his hand.
"I know Analia, I know," he said squeezing her hand gently.
The rest of the ride to the hospital was silent. Derrik was at peace, finally his daughter was safe and with him. As they wheeled her in, she looked him in the eye.
"I'm glad you're my dad," she said with a smile.
"Me too baby girl, me too," he said with a sincere smile.
As doctors worked to check if her ribs were in fact broken and stitch up her cuts, Analia's mother Olivia hurriedly walked into the emergency wing of the hospital.
"Derrik where is she? Is she ok?" the woman questioned tears streaming down her face.
"She's fine, just a little busted up but she'll be fine," he said to her in a calming voice.
"Thank god," she murmured while wiping the tears from her eyes.
Forty minutes later a doctor walked towards Derrik with a small smile on his face.
"Are you Analia Morgan's parents?" he questioned as he stood before them.
"Yes doctor, is she okay now?" Derrik answered getting to the point.
"She is, just a few bruised ribs, but other than that she's doing very well, you both can go see her now," he replied and led them to Analia's room.
Morgan chewed the inside of his cheek as he entered his daughter's room. For a second he thought he would see her lying on the bed looking broken, instead she was sitting up staring out the window with a distant look in her eyes.
"I'll let you all have your privacy," the doctor said slipping out the room and closing the door behind him.
"Lia darling," Olivia started as she took her daughter into a tight hug; the dam of tears broke from behind her eyes once more. "I thought I was going to loose you."
Derrik stepped to the other side of her bed and took her hand gently into his.
"Mom, can I live with dad?" Analia questioned the distant look evaporating from her eyes.
"What, where did this come from?" Olivia said in shock as she let go of her daughter.
"I can still go to school on-line and get my degree that way," she said to her mother hoping she would say yes.
Olivia sighed, she'd gone through a week of hell not knowing where her daughter was, and almost thought she was dead. Now she wanted to live with her father.
"Why do you want to live with him?" she asked as if Derrik wasn't still standing in the room.
"He makes me feel safe," she responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"But what happens when he leaves for days, weeks even,"
"Dad taught me how to fire a gun, and I've been thinking about taking some lessons in Martial Arts,"
"Fine, only if it's okay with your father," Olivia sighed her consent in defeat.
Analia looked to her father with hopeful eyes. Before she wanted to visit her dad more often, but this…this made her want to be with him so she would feel safer.
"Dad?" she questioned while squeezing his hand.
"Of course you can," he said with a smile on his face.
"Thank you," she smiled at him.
Hours later the team sat on their private jet flying back to Quantico relieved at how the day's events played out. Most of them laid back in the chairs asleep or almost asleep. Analia sat next to Derrik with her head on his shoulder, and her eyes heavy with sleep. He pulled his jacket over her, kissing her forehead lightly then leaned back against the seat cushions.
"Are you glad that she's going to live with you?" Reid asked curiously, as he looked to his friend.
"Very, I'm planning on her meeting Garcia," he answered with a small smile on his face.
"Those two will get along," Reid replied with a smile of his own.
"I'm sure."
When the plane landed, it would start another day for Derrik Morgan but a new life for his daughter. His daughter that was lost and was saved, she was his little girl.
A/N: This is the last chapter of this story, so please leave a review after you've read this chapter. Thanks!
