The team arrived back at the precinct after convincing Spencer they had done all they could at the crime scene for the time being. Spencer plopped down at the conference room table, resting his head in his hands for a moment. He couldn't get his mind to focus, he wasn't thinking clearly. When he closed his eyes, visions of JJ calling for his help or lying dead somewhere in a ditch controlled his mind. The words of his mother continued to ring in his head almost like a constant mantra.
'You need to protect her from him.'
The whole time he had simply thought it was another episode, but now it clearly appeared to be a premonition, a prediction, of things to come. He resisted the urge to call her, to press her on what she had seen and why she had said what she had. It was late and she would be sleepy.
Further, she likely wouldn't remember any of it, especially now that they had changed her drugs. He would appear to be the crazy one. Maybe he was going crazy. Maybe this would be the straw that broke the camels back to what was his sanity.
If he lost JJ, if they never found her or she turned up dead, then how could he go on? How could he go on when just days earlier he had never been so happy, to have realized that she truly was the woman of his dreams. How could it potentially be taken all away from him like this, in an instant? It wasn't fair.
He couldn't let that happen. She needed him and he had vowed, to himself and to her, that he would do anything for her, especially when she was in need. He had to review everything they had discussed at the crime scene, the other case be damned.
Spencer reached across the table and grabbed a pen and pad. Normally he could simply visualize everything but he was so tired at this moment that the words on the paper helped to guide his train of thought as he wrote them.
It had to be someone who had seen JJ beforehand. The abduction had been thought out. It had been carried out quickly and efficiently. She had clearly been the target.
The question now was why? Was it because she was an FBI agent? Did it have to do with her press conference? Did she unknowingly cross someone? Was it simply because she was a beautiful, attractive woman? What characteristics had caused the unsub to choose her? What was the end game, the ultimate purpose and reason, behind her abduction? There were so many questions and too few answers.
He hadn't noticed anyone following or hanging too close to JJ, not that he had been around for much of the case, but she hadn't mentioned anything either. When Spencer questioned his teammates they all admitted they had been kind of busy with the case, but that none of them had noticed anything out of the ordinary. If something were suspicious they would've known, and JJ would've said something.
This all started somewhere, these things didn't just normally happen. He needed to find a starting point, a place to work from, and go from there. Ideally, he should wait until the evidence came back from what the crime scene techs had uncovered. The problem was most of that information wouldn't be available until the morning at the earliest. Although the odds suggested JJ wouldn't be killed during that time, Spencer didn't want to take that chance. The longer it took, the more things could happen, the worse they could get, and the farther away from him she could be.
He had to consider the motive.
There were likely two people involved. They knew JJ likely would be with someone, that she was trained, so more than one person was used to take her.
They had taken JJ, but without the use of deadly force and they had appeared to minimize the potential harm to her. There was a certain amount of compassion involved perhaps. She was of value; this wouldn't be a quick and simple take, torture and kill.
Her most valuable belongings, her identity, were left behind. This wasn't out of remorse. This was likely an attempt to get her to leave her current life behind for a 'new life'. If she escaped or was let go, no one would be able to identify her unless they recognized her from TV. Based on this theory, the goal of her captors was to force her to start a new life with them, to leave her old one behind. A certain type of mental games, or brainwashing, would have to take place if they were to be successful in this goal; if that was their goal. The idea chilled Spencer.
What if she were gone for so long that when he got her back she didn't even remember him? What if she didn't remember the life she had? The life they had? It was clear to him if this was the reason JJ was taken, then they would want her for her mind and body. They would want her for all she had to offer, to turn what Spencer had with her into theirs.
'If they touch her I swear…' Spencer snapped back out of his negative thoughts, he needed to keep the thoughts productive.
This seemed like the most logical scenario; what little evidence they had seemed to point to it. It was certainly better than considering her taken by human traffickers. JJ was strong; she could at least delay her captors' goal if this were a private kidnapping.
If it was trafficking, not only would her resistance cause more harm than good, but it would become exceedingly hard to track her through the underground organization. She could easily be lost forever. At least in the private kidnapping scenario once they caught the culprit, they would almost certainly have JJ back as well.
Now the question fell onto her abductors. There were a couple possibilities. Were they both interested in her? This idea would likely put JJ in more trouble. She would have to submit to and please two people with different personalities. But it would also likely lead to conflict amongst the two, meaning they were more likely to slip up or do something stupid.
Was one dominant and the other submissive? This was a good possibility, but it also left some loose ends. Were they family? Were they really close friends? If either answer was no, then the relationship could easily fracture, especially once the submissive became tired or uncomfortable with his role. The dominant would be the one who wanted JJ. The submissive would merely prove less useful once the dominant had her.
Or, were the two men doing the dirty work for someone else? This too was a good possibility. If this were the case, then it brought the "organization" idea back into play. The organization could be a family, a close-knit group of friends, or a gang. In either case, the real dominant person with an interest in JJ would be the person in charge. The two abductors would merely be acting out what they were told to do, dominant personalities or not. Again, if it were an organization then JJ would be in more danger. It was bad enough to be taken by someone and having to deal with that person, it was even worse if one had to do so where the surrounding culture and multiple personalities that consisted of that culture deemed such actions to be acceptable.
Spencer sighed, putting his pen down and scanning over the pages upon pages of ideas he had quickly scribbled down. They covered the table, they surrounded him, and they enveloped him. Now they weren't just simple things floating through his mind; they were physical reminders, evidence, of his train of thought.
At least now he could go back to them, use them as sources if he strayed too far from reality. Now he could sort through logical and illogical scenarios more thoroughly. The problem was, until something truly clicked or there was evidence to help back these things up they were just that; ideas and scenarios, nothing more.
/
"Time to wake up." JJ heard echoing through her ears, as a hand shook her.
She groaned her body weak and barely responsive, her eyes still covered. After being given a minute to move from her drugged slumber and regain some of her strength, she was grabbed by a pair of strong hands, lifting her from her spot on the back seat.
Gently, JJ's feet were placed on the ground, her body supported by the person behind her until her legs adjusted a little to the feel of solid ground. As she leaned against them, she felt the binds on her wrists loosen. The rope pulled away from JJ's chaffed skin, and her arms fell limply to her sides. Her blurry senses tried to gather what was happening, a task made more difficult by the fact she still had a pillowcase over her head.
The cool air still filtered through the tiny fibers of the fabric and reached her nose. JJ could smell the scent of being outside somewhere, the distant smell of a campfire hitting her nostrils. She hadn't spent much time in the southwest, so many of the things she smelt were new to her, doing little in helping her to gather her bearings.
A hand grabbed her wrists, and a longer rope was reapplied to them. This time they were tied firmly in front of her, the excess rope dangling in front of her like an ownerless leash.
"You can lead her, I'll hold onto her." Deep voice said, his hands firmly placed on JJ's shoulders as she leaned into him, her legs still incredibly weak.
Cal shot his partner a look, warning him not to do something stupid, especially not with the boss so close.
"Relax. I'm not an idiot." Deep voice reassured his partner.
Slowly, Cal grabbed the rope and began to gently tug it, leading JJ towards the closed in fortress. She stumbled a little on the uneven ground, thankful she was wearing boots and not dress heels, but not so thankful someone was standing so close behind her.
"Nice and easy." Deep voice purred in her ear, keeping his hands on her shoulders.
JJ wished more than anything that they would take the pillowcase from her head so that she could see where she was heading. She knew it was a tactic, a strategy to keep her off guard, at a disadvantage, unable to get a layout of the place she was being led to.
She heard a door open; she was guided up a couple of steps carefully. The ground became more even, a floor. She could hear voices, lots of voices. The voices were in the distance but she could still tell they were mixed; some were men, some were women, and some belonged to children.
'Where am I?'
The walk seemed long and arduous. JJ wasn't sure if this was truly the case, or if it was just her stressed, fuzzy mind making it seem so long.
"Alright be careful with her, this is where it gets a little treacherous." The man leading her said after a few more minutes of walking had passed.
"No shit." Deep voice called back.
"Careful, pretty… I'll catch you if you fall." He whispered into her ear through the pillowcase. His hand firmly wrapped itself around her stomach to support her, but JJ wanted nothing more than to shove him off of her.
"And…step down." He told her quietly. Tentatively JJ did as she was told, her foot feeling for the step.
"Good. And again…" the man encouraged her, slowly guiding her down the staircase.
JJ breathed heavy, fearful that she would accidently take a wrong step and be sent tumbling who knew how far. Finally, after it felt like she had gone down about twenty stairs, her foot hit the firm surface of a hardwood floor.
"Good girl." Deep voice said as he too reached the bottom. His hand left her stomach and returned to her shoulder, which JJ appreciated.
"Come on, let's go." The second man tugged impatiently at the rope, causing JJ to lurch forward unexpectedly.
"Hey, go easy. We're almost there. What's the hurry?" Deep voice asked his partner.
"I want to get this over with so I can get paid and see my family." The man responded.
They walked in a straight line for about a hundred paces, turned left, walked another fifty paces, and finally turned left, slowly walking another ten steps.
"We're here pretty, you did well." Deep voice told her quietly.
JJ tried not to shudder, her mind trying to figure out where here was. The room smelt sweet, scented a lot like flowers. Besides that, she had nothing to work with. She felt the rope drop as the second man released it. Firmly, the man behind her pressed down on her shoulders.
"Kneel down, nice and easy honey." He told her as he guided her carefully to the floor.
When JJ's knees were firmly planted on the hardwood floor and she was kneeling straight up, the man let go of her shoulders. She moved to drift back, to rest her tired body in more of a kneeling-sitting position, but a hand firmly placed on her back stopped her.
"Don't slouch pretty. He wants to be able to see you." Deep voice told her, forcing JJ to kneel in her previous position.
JJ didn't know what the man meant by that statement, and she wasn't so sure she wanted to. She could sense him standing behind her, the other man breathing in front of her, as they remained quietly waiting.
JJ tried to calm herself, but she felt her heart rate racing, she didn't want to show it, but she was scared. Oh so scared. She didn't know who these men were that had taken her, or what they wanted. All she did know was that they had gone through some trouble to bring her here, which meant they weren't going to let her go very easily. She was here for a reason, she just didn't know for what.
Suddenly the noise around them grew. Three sets of footsteps came clomping down the hallway JJ had just been led down. She knew they were coming for her. Taking a deep breath, she willed herself to put on her bravest face as she prepared for what she was about to face. She didn't know what it was, but she only hoped she would stay strong until her team came to her rescue.
/
Tony strode confidently down the hallway, followed by two of his men as he prepared to finally meet his prize, in person. His heart raced with excitement, an excitement he had barely been able to contain from the moment he heard the SUV pull back onto the property.
His meeting with some of the others had gone well after he reassured them of his coming prize, and now they had Jennifer Jareau, he had Jennifer Jareau. She would now belong to him. It would take some time, some tough days were potentially ahead he reminded himself, but he was confident that things would work out with time. He couldn't wait for that day.
Now, as he entered the room, the breath left him as he saw her kneeling in the center of the floor with her back to him. She was actually here, just feet from him. He felt a happy desire build from his gut as his eyes trailed up her back, pausing extra long to stare at that great ass. He looked at Cal, then Paul, and smiled, nodding his approval.
Tony slowly approached Jennifer Jareau, his heart racing. He couldn't wait to take the pillowcase off her head, to see those gorgeous blue eyes and those luscious golden tresses. He circled her slowly, his eyes taking in every inch of her and admiring how her clothes clung so perfectly to her petite frame; it only served to turn him on more, she was gorgeous.
He now stood in front of her, only a couple of feet away. Her sweet, feminine scent filled his nostrils. It was enough to make him want to groan out loud, but he held it in, wanting to wait until no one was around.
After a moment of blissful anticipation he reached forward for the pillowcase. He watched Jennifer Jareau's small chest rise and fall at a quicker pace.
'She knows I'm here for her.' Tony smiled.
Slowly and gently, he pulled the case from her head, wisps of hair sticking straight up towards the pillowcase as a result of static. Tony watched her beautiful face as she squinted, her eyes struggling to adjust to the brightness of the room. He gave her a moment, willing those pretty blue eyes to open.
Finally, her eyes began to roam the room, frantically taking in her surroundings through the blonde curtain of hair that had fallen into her face. JJ's eyes paused on him, lingering as she sized him up.
The man in front of her was an average height, maybe six feet. He was in good shape, and his tanned skin complemented his brown eyes and short dark hair well. He couldn't be older than thirty-three, and the tone of his skin told her he may be at least part Mexican. He was handsome, but stood confidently, imposing almost. He was dressed nicely; he had a sense of style. JJ wasn't entirely sure what to expect from the man in front of her.
Tony reached his hand out, his hand cupping her cheek, stilling her movements and locking his eyes on hers. Her hazy blue eyes searched his, trying to read what his intentions for her were.
Tony smiled, his hazel eyes remaining locked on hers as he gently brushed the hair out of her face. He watched her struggle to remain stationary as he intimately tucked the hair behind her ears, a move he had seen her perform so many times before in the last few days.
"She's still pretty drugged, isn't she?" He asked in plain English, finally tearing his eyes away from her and staring at the two men who had brought her here. Cal had moved to stand beside Paul, leaving Tony as the only man standing in front of JJ.
"She uh…she started to wake up on our way here, we had to give her a second, smaller dose." Cal explained, his voice a little nervous.
Tony looked back to the beautiful woman in front of him, his thumb lightly caressing her cheek.
"We made sure she was awake when she got here, just as you asked." The man with the deep voice, Paul, spoke up a little defensively. Tony put his free hand up, stopping them from saying anything more.
"It's ok. You did what you had to. I would have preferred her to be a little more lucid, but maybe it's for the best." He explained before turning his attention back to JJ.
"It's nice to finally meet you, Jennifer Jareau." He smiled at her.
JJ stared back at him, scared, but she tried to hide the fear with her defiant look.
"Why so quiet? I know you're a talker, its part of your job." He encouraged, his thumb still stroking her soft skin.
JJ wanted to look away from him, to gather herself, but she knew she couldn't, he would take it as a sign of weakness. Considering her words carefully as best she could through her foggy brain, she cleared her throat.
"Why am I here?" She asked quietly, her mouth very dry.
Tony smiled, noticing how dry her usually pretty voice sounded.
"You'll find that out soon enough…for now, we need to get the introductions out of the way." He replied, his fingers smoothing down the top of her hair possessively. JJ breathed heavy, pleading with herself to not lose it, to remain in control of her emotions.
"Tom, get this pretty lady a glass of water, will you?" He called to one of his men, who immediately obeyed, leaving the room.
JJ turned, craning her neck in an attempt to see who was behind her. She didn't get far before Tony's hand was on her again, turning her head back to face him.
"There's nothing back there for you, keep those pretty blues looking this way." He told her, his hand lifting her chin so their eyes were locked once again. A moment later Tom was back in the room with the glass of water, stepping forward and handing it to Tony.
"Thank you Tom. Men, we are all set here. Go with Tom, and he'll take care of our agreement for you. Thank you both. I am very pleased with your results, as I knew I would be." Tony praised Cal and Paul.
Both men nodded, Paul's eyes glancing back one last time at the blonde on her knees, reminding himself that though pretty, she wasn't worth the trouble for the time being. Slowly, he followed Tom and Cal out of the room, leaving JJ alone with Tony and one other man who stood quietly in the corner.
Carefully, Tony brought the glass to JJ's lips.
"Here, take a sip. I'm sure you must be incredibly thirsty after everything that's transpired." He offered.
JJ hesitated for a moment before nodding, opening her mouth to accept the cold liquid. The water trickled down her dry, raw throat, bringing a refreshing coolness to her senses and sparking her from her haze just a little.
Once the glass was empty Tony pulled it away from her mouth and handed it to the other man still in the room. The man left the room to properly dispose of it.
"My name is Tony, Jennifer, although I know you prefer JJ so maybe I'll go with that instead." He smiled as he introduced himself to her.
"How do you know so much about me?" JJ asked suspiciously, her voice flowing more smoothly now as Tony chuckled.
"There are a lot of things I know about you, JJ, more than you'd probably expect."
"But how…we've never met…I'm not from around here…how did you find me?" She questioned, her brain beginning to clear from the drugs.
"You'd be surprised how easy it is to find someone, to find out about someone, especially when they are in the public eye." Tony laughed, his eyes gleaming.
"Let's just say I don't know you well, not yet anyway. But I have enough information to start a conversation with you. Besides, there will be plenty of time to get to know each other." His hand moved back to her cheek, palming it.
"My team will find me, it's what they do." She stared into his eyes confidently.
Tony looked down at her, his face closing in on hers.
"You may think that JJ, but I have taken some of the necessary precautions to ensure that doesn't happen. I went through a lot of trouble to bring you here. I won't give you up easily." He said, his grip tightening on her face as he became sterner.
JJ tried not shiver at his words or from the dark look that had suddenly crossed his eyes.
"You will be here for a nice, long time if I have anything to say about it. And you will learn your place while you're here." He closed the distance between them and forced his lips to hers. JJ couldn't stop the whimper surfacing from her throat as she pursed her lips tightly together.
Tony squeezed her cheek firmly, painfully, forcing her muscles to give way and her lips to part. JJ lost her balance as he became more intense, his mouth trying to force his tongue inside her mouth. She fell back with a yelp as the kiss broke.
Tony looked at her on the floor, smiling as he wiped his mouth of her lipstick.
"Yes, I have no plans of letting you leave here anytime soon JJ." He confirmed, looking up when the other man returned to the room. Grabbing the long rope that was still attached to her wrists, Tony picked it up and tossed it to the other man.
"Bring Ms. Jareau to my private quarters will you John? I have a few things to attend to before the night is through." He said, motioning the other man to lead her away.
John waited until JJ stood, then began pulling the rope, leading her out of the room by her wrists.
Tony watched as she left; a grin on his face the whole time. Jennifer Jareau was going to be worth having around. He had little doubt she was going to be everything he expected, and more.