Aarons P. O.V
Upon returning from Kansas, I was greeted by the director of the FBI. The team quickly left and headed to their desks before the director said
"We have a problem?"
"What kind of problem?"
"An Eric Johnston has been in contact regarding our asset in the program"
"What's happened?"
"She was found in her apartment, beaten"
"Is she okay"
"mostly. They're bringing her back here. It's time you told your team"
"When is she going to be here"
"Within the hour. You need to tell them now"
"what happens then. She went into the program safely, they didn't know She was alive. What happens next"
"You solve this case. Even if you have to use her to do so" he started to walk away but I stopped him by saying
"Sir are you asking me to use her as bait?"
"If you have to…Yes" he then got in the elevator and left.
I stood there for a second before deciding that I should tell Reid before anyone else. So I took a breath and headed into the bullpen. As I walked up the stairs to my office I said
"Reid can I speak to you in my office?" He replied with
"Sure" his voice was full of confusion. It's understandable, I just spoke with the FBI director and now I'm speaking to him.
When I entered my office I placed my bag next to my desk before walking over to the safe on the bookcase. I had my back to the door as I heard it close, I then said before Reid could
"Relax, you aren't in any trouble" I opened the safe and pulled out a case file. As I turned back to him he said
"What's up?" I hesitated before speaking
"I thought I should tell you before I told the others"
"Told me what?"
"You might want to sit down" he sat down on the couch before I continued
"9 months ago I made a decision that affected everyone on the team, but no one more than you" I handed him the file and continued
"I knew that Cabe Perez wouldn't stop until Elena was dead. As her medical contact I was told first about her condition…despite her injuries she survived barely" pain, confusion and sadness swept across his face as I spoke. He then muttered
"What, she's alive?"
"She was put into Witness protection with her identity as need to know. I'm not sure where she's been since but…"
"But what?! She's okay, right?!"
"Her handler, Eric Johnston has been in contact. Elena was attacked in her apartment a couple of days ago. I'm not sure the extent of her injuries but for her safety she's being brought back here… everything that I know is in that file"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"It was for Yours and Elena's safety. If you knew she was alive and Cabe found out, he would have used you to draw Elena back… I just want to point out that Elena had no idea I was going to do this. I only told her a few days after recovering from surgery. At first she didn't want to go but realised it would have been safer if she did"
"When is she coming back?"
"She's being brought in as we speak" he looked down at the file for a moment and then I said
"Are you okay?"
"Just processing things. Does anyone else know"
"Not yet. I wanted to tell you first"
"I appreciate that. Can I have a minute to think?"
"Sure, I'm going to go tell the rest of the team" he just nodded.
As I closed my office door behind me I was relieved to see Garcia talking with JJ and Emily. I started walking to the conference and as I passed Daves office I said
"Conference room, now!" Before I entered the conference room I heard Morgan say
"Wait, where's Reid?" I stopped and replied
"Conference room, now" worried looks spread across all their faces but they did as they were told and joined me in the conference room.
I stood at the front of the room and waited for everyone to join me. When everyone was sat down I spoke before they could.
"9 months ago this team went through something that we never thought we have to again. Losing Elena the way we did, again, hit us hard… I'm gonna tell you something that will change everything. I made the decision to put her into Witness Protection, that is where she has been for 9 months" everyone, besides Rossi, was in shock and that was clear by the looks on their faces. I then said
"If anyone has any issues related to this then tell me now because as of this moment the Perez case is re-opened and we are going to need the entire team working this, and I mean everyone. Elena is being brought in for her protection" Morgan let out a breath before saying
"Issues? Yeah I got issues, you faked my best friends death"
"I know and I'm sorry but it was for her own safety" they were silent for a moment before JJ spoke
"Does Spencer Know?"
"Yeah, he trying to process things" Rossi then asked
"When if she getting here"
"They should be here in the hour but…" Garcia cut me off by saying
"But, What but? Buts are never good"
"The only reason she is being brought back is because she was beaten in her apartment"
"Is she okay?"
"I don't know, I just found out about the beating" everyone once again went quiet. The room was silent for a couple of minutes until we heard Reid's voice
"It's been 9 months. It's time to solve this case and catch this son of a bitch" at first we were taken back by his outburst but he's right. It has been too long for this case to go unsolved. I smiled at Reid and said
"Alright then, let's do what we do best"
1 hour later
Eric's P. O. V.
The drive from port was a long one. Between there and here we made one stop at a motel to get some sleep and something to eat. We left the motel at 4 this morning so I'm getting tired. Elena is currently asleep in the back seat. I was the one that found her in her apartment and the only reason I went to her apartment was because she missed her weekly check in and because of news from home; Known accomplishes of Cabe have been more active recently.
—
Yesterday evening
I walked into the hotel with some urgency. Elena was supposed to check in with me 2 hours ago and in the 9 months of her being in the program she hasn't missed a check in. The door man at the hotel didn't question my presence as I walked to the elevator. It took a couple of minutes but when I got to the top floor something immediately felt off.
The lights were flickering on and off and it was cold, really cold. I calmly made my way to the end of the hall with my hand on my gun just for in case. When I reached the intended door it was open slightly. Taking my gun out of my holster I quietly entered the room. What I saw put me even more on edge. I saw that just about everything was smashed, turned over, destroyed or out of place.
I was about to call out for Elena and then I remembered her cover
"McKenzie!" I didn't really expect a reply but felt extremely relieved when I got one
"Eric" I let out a relieved breath before heading towards her.
I found her lying in the floor behind the turned over couch. She was lying on her back and had blood flowing from her nose, a black eye, cut on her scalp, blood spots on her t-shirt and her wrist looked slightly purple. I crouched down next to her and said
"What happened?" Pain spread across her face as she tried to sit up. So I said
"Okay. Urm lets get you out of here" I took her left arm and wrapped it around my shoulders before scoping her up bridal style and took her to the nearest medical centre…
—
We could only get her basic medical attention so we didn't risk her identity. We took her to a basic medical centre to get her wounds cleaned and bandaged up. She was cleared of any serious injuries but she has got a couple of broken ribs and a sprained wrist. She was given some painkillers but they don't seem to be helping, the only time she seems relieved is when she's asleep.
Anyway, it was about 10 AM when I pulled up outside of Quantico. When I did Elena had just started to wake up. She sat up as I said
"Welcome home Kid"she looked out of the window just as a couple of familiar faces came out of the nearby lift. It was Aaron Hotchner and David Rossi. A small smile graced Elenas lips as she got out of the car. I rubbed my eyes and got out the car as well.
When I walked around the car Elena said
"It's so good to you, both of you" she first hugged Rossi but noticeably winced when he hugged back. So almost immediately he pulled away and said urgently
"How badly are you hurt?"
"Nothing too serious, few broken ribs, bruises, that's it" Hotch then looked at me and said
"Thank you for bringing her home" I gave him a slight nod before Elena muttered
"Spence" Rossi placed a hand on her shoulder and replied
"He's upstairs. They all know" she then said
"Are they okay?" Hotch replied
"They're a little annoyed but they'll be okay"
"You sure about that?"
"Give them time" I stepped away from the truck and said
"I have to go give an update to my boss. I'll come check on you later" Elena Turner to me and said
"Thank you for everything"
"No problem kid, stay out if trouble" I then got back in my car a drove away.
Elenas P. O. V.
I was noticeably tense when we were in the elevator. I couldn't stop playing with my necklace, until hotch said
"Elena, relax" I then fired back
"Easy for you to say you haven't been dead for 9 months" I looked at him before saying
"Sorry, I guess I'm more nervous than expected" Rossi then said
"Clearly. It'll be fine Kid. We're gonna get this son of a bitch and then you can come home permanently" the lift doors then opened and my heart felt like it was gonna burst out of my chest but only got faster when I saw him sat at his desk…