Thanks again for all the reviews and alerts. I'm still amazed at how many of you are interested in this story. THANK YOU! Here is another chapter I was able to write between my on-call servitude. I am working on the next chapter before I have to go back on-call. I would really be interested on your thoughts of where you would like or see things going with Emily. Please read and review.


Chapter Nine

JJ and Garcia were huddled around the large array of computer screens each one had something different on it. Trying to make sense of all the information that was Phillip Monroe's life was causing JJ's eyes to cross. Up until the accident that took his family he was an upstanding pillar of his community. His family had no skeletons that could be discovered. He and his wife both came from well-known families. By all accounts they seemed like the perfect family.

Turning to her friend on the other side of the room, she let out a sad sigh before she spoke. "How could somebody like this get it in his mind that he could recreate his family by kidnapping other people to replace them?" JJ wondered out loud.

"I think his family might have been too perfect. It's hard to live with imperfection when you have experienced perfection," Garcia commented.

"We have not dealt with a suspect like this before. I'm worried Penelope. What if he is able to completely wipe her mind and she is unable to remember who she is? She is unable to remember me," she softly asked.

Garcia moved her chair closer to her young friend and placed her hand around her shoulder for comfort. They sat like that for several minutes in silence until JJ harshly wiped her face dry.

"We won't find her if I just sit here blubbering like a baby. Emily needs me to be strong for her and that's what I'm going to do." Turning to face the computer screens again, she asked, "What do we know about where he has been living since the accident?"

Saying nothing, Garcia brought up the information that they had on one of the screens had what they found. They both looked at the information trying to discern a pattern.


Emily did not want to fall asleep again but she was more tired than she realized and had quickly drifted off as soon as she had laid down. Phillip came in the room as soon as she was sleep. He gently rubbed his hand lightly over her cheek. He had to figure out a way not to lose her. The other one was obviously not his real Claire but this one he had to save before he was forced to let her go. He knew it would be hard to explain if he had to look for the real Claire to the rest of his family especially his wife.

Sitting on the bed beside her he lifted her arm and gave her another injection of medication. He then placed the headphones over her ears and turned on the CD player.

Unbeknownst to Phillip, Harry had been standing in the doorway watching what had transpired in the room. He had a curious look on his face not truly understanding why he would have to give the woman a shot. Not sure what to think he quietly returned to the great room with the others hoping to talk to her later.

Phillip looked up thinking that he had heard a noise but there was no one there. He hoped that the additional shot would help Claire be more like herself. Checking her vitals he gathered the syringe and left the room for her to sleep hoping that she would be better when she woke up.

Finding Sally reading a magazine with Tammy, he told her that he was going to pick up some barbeque for dinner. He checked to make sure that his family was okay as he took orders for dinner. He informed his family that he would be gone for a few hours because he was getting the food from a special place and picking up other groceries.

"Sally could you check on Claire in a little while. She wasn't as rested as she thought. You all probably should just have sandwiches or leftovers for lunch. I will be back after lunch," Phillip said.

Sally got up from her seat as Phillip was getting ready to leave to walk him to the door. She kissed him on the cheek and gave him a genuine smile as he walked out the door. She missed him when he left the house but when he returned he always seemed to bring someone home so she always felt less lonely. She wondered if he was going to bring someone new home with him this time.

Phillip left the house feeling better about everything. He would have his whole family together including his Claire. He decided that there was no need to go back into Houston so he decided to head north to get what his family needs. Feeling more secure about his family he decided to stock up on supplies that they will need until it was safe for them to go back out into the world.


Hotch, Rossi, Morgan and Reid felt as if they were a car trying to drive with only three wheels. They had gone over everything they had on Phillip Monroe and the accident that had driven him over the edge. They still couldn't find his whereabouts. The one lead they thought they had where they felt he might be living turned out to be a dead end. His house had burned to the ground after it was struck by lightning during a severe storm six months ago. They felt that he may be living somewhere near the Lake Conroe area but they came up with nothing.

Rossi flung the file he was reading down on the table in frustration. "What are we missing? He just can't vanish into thin air."

Everyone understood his frustration. It has been 24 hours since she has gone missing and they all felt at a loss to find her.

"Let's go back over the information and look for the least minor detail that might seem insignificant. Sometimes the most minor detail can be the key that unlocks the whole puzzle," Hotch suggested.

Standing up from the table, Reid walked over to the display board that had the pictures of the victims and a map of the areas that had been searched. Staring at the board intensely it was obvious to those around him that he was trying to solve this puzzle.

Turning to look at his teammates, he said in an inquisitive tone, "We haven't looked at where he was before the first victim was taken. Suppose the trigger actually occurred during that time and not when his family was killed as we originally thought."

"I'll contact Garcia. Maybe she and JJ will be able to come up with something. At least it will give JJ something useful to do. I'm surprised she hasn't tried to contact us to find out what we know," Morgan said.

"I asked Garcia to keep her busy so she wouldn't be calling us causing undo disruption," Hotch stated with little emotion.

Morgan gave him an angry glare for a quick second and then realized that was probably for the best. It took all of his convincing to keep her off the next plane to Texas.

Punching up the connection to Garcia, Morgan sat in front of the screen with Reid standing over his shoulder. The two women appeared on the screen with anxious expressions.

"Have you found her?" they both asked in unison.

"No but we want to explore another angle. We need you to dig up everything you can on what Phillip Monroe was doing from the time of his family's death to the time that the first person went missing."

Reid added, "There may have been another type of trigger than what we previously assumed."

"The death of your entire family is not enough of a trigger, what else could have happened?" JJ took a deep breath as she ran her fingers through her hair. "I will go back through news files of what was reported about the accident. Something happening to someone that high profile, there had to be some type of news footage."

Garcia chimed in happy that she had something more to investigate. "I'll go through his financials and see what comes up."

Rossi nodded from across the table approving of the tactics that everyone was taking. He was more worried about Emily then he let on not just because the fear of what Monroe was capable of but because he looked upon Emily as a member of his family.


The family was in the great room watching the movies that Phillip had brought home the other day after they had eaten lunch. Sally had gone in to check on her daughter who was not fully awake yet. She stroked her head gently as she had done the day before. Emily had begun to stir at the touch of the woman. Remembering her blonde angel Emily began to murmur the name Jennifer.

Sally softly spoke to her as she ran her hand gently over the brunette's hair. "You need to be careful or your father will have to send you away. I don't want to lose anyone else. We can be a family."

Harry again was standing in the doorway looking in on Emily and this time listening to Sally talk to Claire. He walked quietly into the room and placed his hand on her shoulder which caused her to jump slightly.

"Do you believe that we can be a family?" He pointed to the sleeping woman in the bed, "Do you think if she doesn't get better, Phillip will send her away?"

"He's done it before. I don't want to see anyone else leave the family. I've been here the longest and it gets lonely when no one is here," said Sally without looking up.

"I don't think she belongs in this family. She doesn't act like she belongs here. Maybe it will be better if she left so we can be a family. Claire had already been out in the world maybe she should go back into the world. Children leave home every day." Harry was trying to make sense out of what he had heard and seen over the last 24 hours.

Sally stood and faced Harry with a scared look on her face. "Harry! Don't talk like that. Phillip can send you away. Is that what you want for the family?" she said in a hushed urgent voice trying not to wake Emily.

Sensing the woman's distress he quickly said, "I'm sorry Sally. I won't do anything to break up the family." She visibly relaxed.

"We just need to help Claire so she won't have to leave." Sally turned and patted her daughter's hand. "I don't want to lose any of my family and that includes you and her."

Harry took her hand squeezing it gently. "I will stay with Claire for a while so you can go watch the rest of the movie with the family."

"Thank you Harry. I think Claire would like to spend time with her uncle," she said in a relieved voice. She smiled at the sleeping figure and then went to join the rest of her family.

Watching Sally leave the room, Harry went and sat on the edge of the bed and looked at the woman. He saw her eyes flutter open and stare at him. He softly said, "No matter what, I'll look out for you. I won't let Phillip send you away unless you want to leave."

Thinking about what he was saying she realized she didn't remember where she could go if she were to leave but something was still feeling wrong about being here.

She looked at him with wide eyes. "Father will send me away? Why?" Emily asked with fright.

"I think he will protect you now," Harry said noticing that she had referred to him as her father.

"He doesn't want us to leave here. Does he?"

"No. He wants us to stay here. Your mother was just in here; do you want me to get her for you?" he asked wondering if she also had a connection with Sally.

"I'm fine. Did father leave? Do you think he will bring back Jennifer?"

He raised his eyebrow in question, "Who's Jennifer?"

"She's my…she's…I don't know who she is. I just know that she's important to me. She is my blonde angel." Emily turned her head and looked out the window as if she could see the blonde. Turning back to look at Harry she gave him thoughtful stare. "Do you think he will let me try to find her?"

Taking a deep breath he tried to organize his loyalty to his family and to this young woman. He answered the only way he thought he could. "I think it will be best if you wait for a while before you ask him. I also wouldn't talk about Jennifer to anyone, except maybe me."

She nodded her head in agreement even though she would still do what she could to find her blonde angel.

"You feel up to watching a movie with the family until your father returns with dinner?" Harry asked with a smile.

"I guess so. I haven't had an opportunity to spend much time with them since I came here."


Garcia and JJ had been going over gigabytes of information about Phillip Monroe and still felt like they were no closer to finding him. The team in Houston was having the same results as well.

Finally coaxing JJ to at least stop and eat something several hours ago, now Garcia's task was to have her get some sleep whether it be on a couch in her office or in her own bed.

"JJ we need to stop and get some rest. All this stuff is starting to look like a big blur. Let's get some sleep and tackle this fresh tomorrow," Garcia pleaded.

"I need to find Emily. I don't want her to think that I just gave up on her."

"Sweetie, she knows you wouldn't give up on her. But she wouldn't want you to run yourself into the ground either. Emily knows you will do everything in your power to make sure she is safe. Just like all of us are doing."

JJ had not cried since she had started working with Penelope to find Monroe. Taking a long break was what she feared would bring back all her emotions that she had worked so hard to keep under wraps. Just thinking about sleeping or doing anything but looking for the crazed man that had her beloved was starting to crumble the wall she had worked hard on building to hide her emotions.

"Honey let me take you home. I will even stay there with you, that way we can come back fresh first thing tomorrow morning. Whaddaya say?" Garcia said trying to convince the woman.

Trying not to cry she said, "It won't matter where I am because if I sleep I will dream of Emily."

"That's not a bad thing baby. Dream about what you two will do when she comes home," Garcia said with a smile.

Tears began to roll down the blonde's cheeks. "What if she comes home and doesn't remember me or she doesn't come home at all?"

Giving her friend a hug to comfort her she pulled the woman out of her chair. "See. That's just exhaustion talking because she will come home and she will be fine. Let's get you home so you can get some rest and hopefully have an erotic dream about your lady love." Garcia did her best to hide her own fears from her friend by joking about their sex lives.

Garcia didn't wait for any response. She just packed up her laptop and anything else that might be needed just in case. Grabbing JJ's coat and her own coat she escorted her out of the office to her home to hopefully get some sleep.