Thanks you for the reviews on the last chapter. Here's the next one, thanks for reading, and please review!
They were at some hole of a car dealership in Nowhere, New Jersey, when the report came on the radio of their new car. Well, new is a relative term. It was a 1998 silver Dodge Neon that had seen better days, but would be nicely inconspicuous on the road. Chris had negotiated with the shop, the pieces of his Caddy for the Neon, fresh license plates, and no questions. They were only too happy to comply, being of the criminal element as well.
Emily remained cuffed to the Caddy while he transferred everything (kids included) to the Neon. She was uncuffed from the door only for moments before he attached her to the Neon. If she wasn't so damned tired, she might have fought him, or if two kids weren't in danger. It was as he was pulling out, and fiddling with the radio that it came on. He cranked up the volume.
"Breaking news in now. A New York state senator, Christopher Bennett, has abducted his two small children and an FBI agent. The Bureau is requesting that anyone with information contact their tip line at 1-800-555-9911. We have descriptions for all four persons, starting with Bennett-" Chris shut off the radio before it could finish.
"I told you, Chris. They won't stop looking." She spoke not looking at him, and her voice soft.
"I guess I'll have to fix that then." He didn't say anything else, but drove down the road, further into the sleepy little town.
Emily could feel her eyes starting to drift shut, the need for sleep intensified by the soft motions of the moving car. She fought it, blinking and periodically jerking awake after her eyes did shut. When the car suddenly stopped, it startled her awake, and she realized she'd really fallen asleep.
They were in the back of a parking lot of a drug store, far away from anyone else. Chris killed the engine and removed the keys. She expected him to head directly into the store, but instead, he opened the back driver's side, and pulled out a nonsense-babbling Carrie. Kyle was asleep, exhausted from the fear and confusion, and being dragged out of his home when he should have been sleeping.
Emily was further surprised when he set Carrie gently into her arms-or rather arm, since the other wasn't much use cuffed to the door. Chris took the edge of the blanket, and tucked it over the silver cuffs, covering them from anyone's view. He let the baby grab his finger, and smiled as she gurgled excitedly at him. Then he placed a delicate kiss to her head, and managed to capture Emily's lips before she could object.
"Don't try anything, Em. Don't break my heart again." Then he disappeared, headed for the store.
She was left to sit and wait, and close her eyes as the past threatened to choke her. His kiss was how she remembered it-soft and gentle, and so full of affection it terrified her. That fear was from the past and the present. Emily had been so in love with him fifteen years ago that she'd almost sacrificed what she wanted to his dutiful wife, mother to his children, and his greatest political champion. That feeling had been as terrifying as it was wonderful, but in the end it hadn't been enough.
John Lennon was full of shit. Love wasn't all you needed in a relationship.
But, now Chris was somehow capable of waving a gun around, threatening his own children's lives and hers, and hitting her. The only place he'd ever been aggressive was the political arena, never would Emily have entertained the notion that he'd ever abuse a woman. He was one of the nice guys. She'd always blamed the failures of their relationship on herself.
Emily looked down at the baby cradled in her arm, the sweet little girl who, like her older brother, inherited her mom's beautiful brown eyes. Carrie was perfectly innocent, and should have had a beautiful ideal life in Albany with her mom and dad. But, this story wouldn't end happy. Carrie would at the very least, not grow up knowing her mother or father. She and Kyle would struggle through their lives to try and understand what happened with their father.
If they all lived through this.
"Hello sir," a chirp of a voice greeted.
"Garcia, you have the team," Hotch told her, holding his cell phone out so everyone could hear. They were in the same conference room that they'd worked the case in, though now they all looked worried.
"I got them going through tollbooths into Massachusetts, Connecticut, back into New York, and I'm still searching. It's taking way longer than it should to drive those distances, but I think he's taking a lot of back roads, hoping not to be seen. Based on his trajectory, I'm thinking he went into New Jersey, but I'm still working on hacking their system. I did get some information on Chris Bennett though, and it isn't exactly happy."
"Could it be worse?" Reid asked, completely serious.
"Oh, my sweet, young genius, it can always be worse." Garcia's normally cheerful, energetic voice sounded almost mournful.
"What do you have, babygirl?" Morgan asked.
"Uh well, you guys didn't happen to find a gun there, did you?"
"No, there was no gun. He has a permit?" Hotch said.
"Yep. 38 Smith and Wesson. He's had it for about six years. That's the first bit of bad news, my friends. The second is bank statements. I got into his account, and went back as far as I could, about 2000. Bennett was seeing a Dr. Robin MacNamara on a weekly basis until shortly before he married Sarah in 2002. I did a little looking and found that Robin MacNamara is a shrink in Connecticut. I called and Bennett's been seeing her since March 1995, which, I don't need to remind you all, was shortly after Em left him. MacNamara wouldn't tell me anything else. Her records aren't in an online database that I've been able to discern, so we can't circumvent the law on this one, kids. You'll have to do it the old fashioned way."
"A warrant." JJ sighed and ran a hand through her hair. That didn't really have time for that.
"Yep. Sorry guys. I'll continue my information hunt, and try to track them through Jersey. Garcia out." And, she was gone.
"Dave, take Reid and head to Connecticut. I'll work on having a warrant there by the time you arrive. JJ liaise with New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland state police, tell them what's going on. Morgan, I'll give you the number for Ambassador Prentiss; she's in Argentina right now, but I need you to get her on the phone and find out everything she knows about Chris Bennett. We'll take the plane back to Quantico, and then I'll send it to Connecticut to retrieve you." He nodded to Rossi and Reid.
Everyone filed out the door, and to the SUVs. JJ was already on the phone with someone when she got into the back of an SUV with Hotch and Morgan. Hotch pulled his out after snapping in his seatbelt, and proceeded to update a tight-lipped Strauss on the situation.
They hadn't found too much useful at the house. It was the perfect existence until Sarah Bennett was murdered, and then it seemed her widower spiraled out of control. It made Hotch wonder though, did Prentiss's renewed presence in his life precipitate the breakdown? Or, would it have been worse without her? Would he have simply executed his children and then taken his own life?
That very scenario was what he feared now.
"Babydoll, work your magic, and set me up with a video phone call to Ambassador Prentiss." Morgan strode into Garcia's lair, voice as smooth as silk.
"Video phone call? You're so cute when you sound like you walked out of the nineties," she teased.
"Well whatever you call it."
"Well, skipping all technical jargon, most people call it Skype. Grab a chair, handsome." Penelope swung over to an unused monitor, and drummed over the keyboard, doing god only knew what.
Morgan did as commanded, and sat beside her, studying the monitors that circled her body on a daily basis. One up on the wall seemed to hold a constant newsfeed, CNN it looked like. He wondered how many times Garcia had looked up and seen Emily's face on that screen today. Another screen was split into four, and held grainy footage into the front of the SUV. Three from the tollbooths and the one she'd found off the red light camera in New York. Garcia had been right, it was hard to tell anything from the poor footage, but it was pretty clear Prentiss was handcuffed to the door.
The other monitors held maps, databases searching...well, he didn't know what, records of some kind, and so many other things, his eyes tried to stage a rebellion. "How the hell do you ever know what you're supposed to be looking at?"
Garcia turned from the monitor to look at him pointedly. "I've been telling you for years, I'm a goddess. Did you doubt me, mortal?"
"Not if you get that phone-skype thing working."
"Two more seconds. I'm messaging with her secretary...and, here you go."
"Yes?" A troubled-looking Ambassador appeared on the screen. Morgan and Garcia quickly switched spots.
"Ambassador, I'm Derek Morgan, I work with your daughter-" She cut him off.
"Yes, I remember you, Agent Morgan. Have you found Emily, yet?"
"I'm sorry, we haven't. I have a few questions though, if you don't mind." Really, even if she did, he'd still insist on asking, he was just being polite.
"Of course not."
"What can you tell me about Chris Bennett?"
The ambassador sighed. "I couldn't have imagined him capable of this...he loved Emily, very much. Whatever I know about him is over a decade old, Agent."
"It's more than we have now." He could feel Garcia by his shoulder, watching nervously.
"Alright. He came from a good family, his father was a state senator, his mother was his father's campaign manager and a homemaker. His baby sister is the black sheep of the family, always intent on saving someone or something. I'd heard rumor in recent years that he had a good shot of rising to the national senate. When I knew him, he was much more conservative than Emily, but that didn't seem to bother them. Their graduation dinner was like watching a televised debate except without any rules, they loved to argue. I assume you don't need to be told, my daughter is very...spirited." The FBI agent and the tech both smiled at that. "I think that's why they were so good together, he was as passionate and stubborn as she was, and he wasn't intimidated by her. Back then, I was sure I'd be a grandmother before I turned sixty..."
"Their break-up was a surprise," he said.
She scoffed. "Now that's an understatement. I thought she was being difficult, but I realized eventually that that wasn't an easy thing for her to do."
"You had a falling out with Chris's mother?"
"I didn't tell Emily about that."
"Chris mentioned it, said you and his mother stopped talking."
"No. Blythe was very angry, and she got angrier as Chris became more of a mess. I may not have approved of how Emily handled things, but I can only tolerate so much slander of my child."
Morgan frowned. "Chris took it very badly?"
"You have a knack for understatement, Agent Morgan. Chris became very, very depressed, and I think he started seeing a psychiatrist or something. I know that it got bad enough that his sister was staying with him, but before that, he was the most stable young man I'd ever met. I was impressed enough with him to be thrilled with their engagement. I'm afraid I don't know much more than that."
"I appreciate your time, Ambassador."
She nodded, and seemed to hesitate for a few seconds, long enough for Morgan to see her confidence waiver. "You'll keep me updated on Emily?"
"Of course...we'll find her, Ambassador. We won't stop looking until we do."
"Thank you." For a minute before the connection ended, Elizabeth Prentiss looked just a little bit lost.
"Thank you all for coming, tonight," JJ began the press conference, something she'd done a hundred times. But, never with the tight knot sitting in her chest as it was now. "As you all know some time before 3 am this morning, New York State Senator Christopher Bennett abducted his two children and a federal agent. Bennett's wife, Sarah was murdered five days ago, and the Bureau has made an arrest in that case, your press packets will have more information if you need it. We now believe that Bennett is suffering from a psychotic break, which makes him delusional and dangerous. He has a history of depression, and we believe that his wife's death triggered the psychotic episode. It should also be noted that Bennett is armed with a firearm, and we believe that he is likely to use it if he feels threatened. There are copies of photos of Bennett and his two children, five year-old Kyle and six-month old, Carolyn in the packet. There's also a photo of the agent he abducted, Emily Prentiss, a member of the Behavioral Analysis here at Quantico. We believe Bennett has a considerable amount of cash at his disposal, and is driving a black 2009 Cadillac Escalade. We are asking that anyone, with any information about Bennett, the children or Agent Prentiss please call our tip line at 1-800-555-9911. I'll take a few questions now."
She pointed to a man wiggling his hand in the air. "What makes you so certain Bennett is suffering a psychotic break? That your agent didn't go with him willingly?"
"I'm not at liberty to comment on that, but I can say that we know with a certainty that Agent Prentiss is being held against her will."
She took another question. "Is it true that Senator Bennett and Agent Prentiss have a history together?"
JJ tried not to look annoyed, but at least this, she was allowed to answer. It would have been easy information to get anyway. "Yes, they attended Yale together."
"Isn't it true they were engaged?" The same woman asked.
"Yes, they were."
She waved to someone else. "Have you had any contact with Agent Prentiss or Senator Bennett since the abductions?"
"No, we have not."
JJ picked another person. "How do you know she or the children, or even Bennett are still alive?"
The media liaison swallowed, the reporter tapping into one of her fears. "We know they were alive as of 10 am this morning."
"That was almost seven hours ago?"
"We don't believe Bennett wants to kill them, his delusion is based on the need to maintain his family. We don't believe he'll harm them unless that delusion is threatened, but that said, it should be remembered that Chris Bennett is very dangerous right now. We'd like to get his children and Agent Prentiss to safety as soon as possible." Hands continued waving around in the air with accompanying shouts. JJ silenced them quickly. "That's all the questions for now, thank you all for coming."
She hurried off the stage to the little anteroom behind the press center, and leaned with her back against the wall, tilted her head back, and closed her eyes.
"Are you alright?"
JJ's eyes flew open, and she titled her head back to look at Hotch. "I've never had to talk about one of us in a press conference before."
"You did a good job," he answered.
She nodded. "It's different when it's personal...harder."