Author's note. This particular part of the story started as another fanfiction story. Then I found out about Emily's leaving and dumped it. I hope you enjoy.
CM************************************************************************
Chapter 7 Emily's in Trouble
Reid got up like he normally did. He got dressed and made himself a quick breakfast, just like he did every day. After grabbing his messenger bag and his credentials and gun he left for his morning coffee.
Reid always walked to his favorite coffee shop. It was only a block from his apartment building. He waited in line and grabbed his usual blend. He was walking to the train lines when his phone rang.
"Emily." He answered wondering why she was calling.
"Reid, I need you to listen to me." Prentiss said in a serious tone.
Reid stopped in his tracks. "What's wrong?"
"When I came home last night there were three men in my house."
"Are you alright?" Reid asked quickly. He looked around for a cab to flag down. Reid planned to go to where ever Emily was at right then.
"They haven't hurt me and they won't." Prentiss said quickly. "Go into the office the same way that you normally would. Do not call anybody. The team is being watched."
Reid looked around to see if he could see anybody. No one stood out.
Prentiss continued talking. "Do not come to my house looking for me. That will be an infraction of the rules and they will know."
"What do they want?" Reid asked.
"The team will receive ransom instructions soon. Listen, tell your mom not to worry about me."
With that the phone went dead.
Reid managed to hail a cab. He told the driver to take him to the FBI building.
His heart was racing. Reid really wanted to call the team and tell them that Emily was in trouble, but he couldn't. Emily had told him not to call anybody.
After several minutes the cab had made it though the traffic and to the building. Reid paid and quickly rushed into the building and his office.
He had actually arrived early. Hotch and Rossi were already in their offices. He didn't see J.J. or Garcia.
Morgan came in right behind him. "Hey Pretty Boy, you're early."
"I need to see everyone in the conference room right now." Reid said.
"Is it Diana?" Morgan asked. That was the only time he had ever seen that look on Reid's face. It was when Becky had told him something was wrong with Diana.
Blood was pounding in Reid's ears. "We need the team together right now. Emily's in trouble."
Morgan called to Rossi and Hotch who came out of their offices in a hurry. J.J. and Garcia had come in at that time. They had heard Morgan yell to Hotch and Rossi. They knew there was trouble.
The team quickly went into the conference room.
"What's going on?" Morgan asked.
"Emily was kidnapped last night." Reid started.
"And you thought to tell us now!" Morgan immediately started.
"I didn't know until she called me this morning." Reid shot back.
Agent Hotchner took immediate control of his team. "Tell us what happened. What did she say?"
Reid relayed the entire conversation word for word.
"She told you to tell your mom not to worry?" J.J. said after Reid finished.
"Yes, it was all probably scripted, but she was still trying to get messages to us." Reid said.
"What was her tone?" Rossi asked.
"Calm and assertive." Reid answered.
"She said her house was being watched along with us." Morgan said. "What are we supposed to do? We can't go to the crime scene."
"We wait for the ransom demand." Hotch said. "This doesn't leave this office. As far as anyone is concerned Agent Prentiss is at home with the flu."
The team nodded in understanding.
"Garcia, trace her phone. See if she still might have it on."
Garcia got up quickly and went to her lair.
The rest of the team didn't waste any time trying to figure out from what they had. They would work victimology on Prentiss.
Reid had told the team everything he had ever told Emily about his mother. They need to know what clue Emily was trying to send them. J.J. was writing everything on the white board.
Morgan had written down the entire conversation that Reid had with Prentiss.
From that they began to decipher what they had.
They were dealing with a team because Prentiss had said three men. They were organized. They were able to get into Prentiss' house and kidnap her. They allowed her to make the call.
Prentiss had said the team was being watched and that Reid shouldn't call anyone.
Garcia walked back in. "The phone is off. I can't trace it. If it turns on I will know."
"Do you think that's what Prentiss meant?" Rossi asked. "Do not call anybody. The team is being watched. The Un-Subs are monitoring our phones."
"They had Prentiss' phone so they would have all our numbers." Morgan said. "That's what she wanted to warn us about."
"We'll purchase go-phones." Hotch said. "J.J. get each of us a phone and put the numbers in. We'll use those on this case."
J.J. left to go purchase the phones.
The team in the meantime waited for the ransom demand to come in. They weren't entirely sure how they would receive the demand.
The worst part is always the waiting.
It was just before lunch that the team received a package. Agent Anderson had gone to pick it up. It had been delivered by a messenger to the FBI building and the BAU.
The package was quickly scanned to check the contents before opening. The only thing inside was a CD.
Garcia placed the CD in the player so it would show on the conference room screen.
The video was of Prentiss. She appeared to be in a room with no distinct features. She was tied to a chair. The team could see a bruise on her face and what looked like defensive wounds on her hands. She had clearly put up a fight.
Her demeanor was normally calm. "My captor does not want any recordings of himself. So far I have been treated humanely. I have been assured that I will be treated well. The terms of my release are simple."
The team was studding Prentiss' behavior for any cues.
"J.J. you need to look through the requests that you have on your desk. You need to find a case of a serial killer in Brushville, Ohio."
The collective thought of the team was simple, all this to get the team to take a case?
"The team is to take the case and solve it. Once you find the person responsible J.J. make sure the media publishes it. When the captor sees the story he will release me. If you set something up to make it look like you solved the crime, then I will be killed. The details of the case, including how you caught the Un-Sub must be published. If not I will be killed."
With that the video went dead.
"What do we do?" Garcia asked.
"J.J. do you know what case he's talking about?" Hotch asked.
"Yes, I received it two weeks ago. They didn't ask for a request. They just wanted a consult. I gave it to you Rossi."
Rossi appeared to be in thought for a moment.
"The Brushville police think that two murders are connected. Both were of teenage girls. I'll get it." Rossi quickly went to his office and brought back the file.
The case file was opened for everyone to read.
"Two girls, 15 and 16." Rossi said as the team looked through the file. "One was stabbed repeatedly the other was strangled."
"Why did they think they were connected?" Morgan asked.
"Both girls were dumped in the exact same spot, both poised the same way." Rossi answered.
The team looked at the pictures of both girls. They were lying down on their backs with their legs spread and knees lifted. Their hands were tied together over their heads.
"No sign of sexual assault on either girl." Rossi noted.
Hotch looked at his team. "Someone is going to benefit from this case getting solved. That was why they have taken Prentiss from us. We will solve this case, but we also try to figure out who benefits from this being solved."
The team silently agreed.
"Garcia. I need you to check everyone who is involved in this case. By everyone I mean detectives, family members, anyone connected to those girls."
"Yes sir." Garcia asked.
"Since they are monitoring our phones when we talk about the case use your regular phones. If we need to talk about Prentiss use the go-phones. Understood. Wheels up right now."
