Thank you so much for the reviews alerts/ favs and for sticking with the story!

I got this bit done before we left civilization! Thank you for the well wishes I'm looking forward to the trip.

I hope that you caught your breath last chapter cause it about to ramp up again and be pretty rough for a while!

Happy Reading!

The car moved along slowly but Emily was unaware of its progress. She lowered the window for the cool air to refresh her skin, and closed her eyes to the sensation, but the relief only lasted momentarily. The two passengers sat in a strained silence. There was no noise except for the flapping of the wind through the half opened window.

How long would he allow her to remain in her head? She hoped for now at least, she needed the silence and solitude. He refused her constant requests to go to the office and not the hotel, so she closed herself off to any other conversation. She had only given up her protest because she wanted a real shower. She had no plans to sleep; she'd take a cab back if no one would drive her.

Morgan would not hear of doing a cognitive interview at this point, and that more than frustrated her. Three people had seen this man, and she was one of them. She thought everyone was too satisfied with their description and artist rendition that they got from the Tanner's. How could they be okay with the lack of information or leads? This man was a ghost, and a deadly one at that. She hated feeling helpless and by everyone pushing her to take a step back was just more aggravating.

She stared out the window, her vision unfocused. The world in front of her was nothing more than a blur of green masses and grey buildings that blended together.

She snapped into reality briefly as the car came to a stop at a light. The red stared down and her and she began to feel impatient for it to change. Sirens wailed and somewhere a horn honked, but they were all insignificant background noises. She felt Derek's eyes on her. She purposefully kept her head turned away to not acknowledge his constant concern.

As she stared past the window her eyes caught the effects of the warm day, and casually gazed at the park they were stopped next to. It was bursting with life. Parents occupied benches, visiting with each other and following the antics of their little ones that raced up and down the playground. Laughter and shrieks of delight filled the air. She watched a mother push her small son on a swing. Pure joy filled the boys face as he swung to and fro. The scene should have been a contagious one, creating an instant smile on the brunettes face, but the dark cloud held its ground. She could only see the monster that lurked behind the trees and hid in the shadows. He was ready to pounce at any moment to steal the innocence from the child, and utterly destroy his mother.

The sudden forward movement redirected her. She blinked away the thought and was relieved that the light had finally changed. The next few minutes became just as blank in her mind as the previous ten. The car jerking to a stop signaled their arrival to the hotel, and Emily didn't hesitate to pull the handle and initiate her escape.

"Prentiss."

She stopped at his voice and turned back to the dark agent.

"Hold up." He called to her. She remained still and watched his movements as he got out.

She fought the urge to roll her eyes. "You only need to come up if your going to wait. I'm just going to shower and be ready to go."

"Not happening." He tried to joke, but his smile faded when she didn't return it.

Emily stared at him and felt the anger begin to bubble. "This is ridiculous and you know it."

Derek stopped and leaned forward against the hood. "Emily, listen to me. We're going to get him, and we need you. Please just take some time to rest, then help us with a clear head."

"A clear head," she huffed under her breath, "right."

"Emily-"

"No Derek, you don't understand. We have to get ahead of him; I can't take a minute to rest. What good does that do Kelly or any of his other victims?"

"There are five very capable minds working on it right now. No one is pushing you away."

"Okay, then come in and wait. I can be back down in ten minutes."

"No."

Fine she mouthed and gently shut the door and turned to walk away. She listened for him to follow, and wasn't surprised when he was quickly in front of her opening the door.

He eyed her as she slide past him. "I just want to make sure you actually get to your room."

"Now you're wasting time babysitting." She said without looking at him.

"Prentiss stop."

Emily ignored his request and kept moving. When they reached the elevator Derek reached out and gently turned her to face him.

She shook her head. "I can't sit around in a dark hotel room knowing that man is out there."

"I know, but more than anything I need you okay."

Emily took in a breath to stop herself before her frustration over took her forced cool. "Put your concerns in Kelly being okay, and getting this guy. I'm fine."

"Of course you are." Derek's voice was thick with doubt. He frowned and looked up to the lights that indicated the progress of the elevator. "Rest and in a few hours come help us get the son of a bitch."

His words did nothing for her. She pressed the elevator button impatiently.

"Yeah." She replied sharply, the word escaping under her breath.

When the elevator doors opened on her floor Emily couldn't move fast enough down the hall, but when she reached the door she hesitated. She tilted her head and glance back to Morgan. He leaned against the wall and patiently waited for her to use the key card and enter the room. She blew out a breath at the same time as she slowly turned the handle. She didn't want to be loud if JJ was asleep. The room was shaded in darkness and the almost silent breathing from the blonde filled the room. Emily eyed Derek and grabbed her go-bag before heading to the bathroom.

"Five minutes." She whispered.

He shook his head and raised his eyebrows as he watched her retreat. She knew when she emerged he'd be gone, but that meant nothing to her determination to get back and actively working on the case.

She shut the door and ran the water turning it as hot as it would go. As she waited for the desired temperature she dug through her bag for a pair of slacks and dress shirt. She tried to avoid it but her reflection caught her eye. She quickly looked away not wanting to believe that was her damaged self looking back.

She instead busied herself to remove the bandage on her wrist and hand. The rhythmic pattern almost became calming until the swollen hand was revealed. The image of the knife that was forced in it flashed in front of her. It was clear there was no escape from the memories. She knew it was only going to get worse.

"Great." She sighed and winced at the pain as she failed to close her hand into a fist. Steam began to fill around her and she ignored the pain to remove the hospital scrubs she had been given.

Satisfied with the water she got in and leaned back into the scalding stream and let it pound her body. She wanted to feel the burn and imagine it scorching the layer of her that was covered in the horrors from earlier. She closed her eyes but they shot open when Kelly's blood filled her vision. The nightmare was always going to be right under the surface waiting for her, to remind her of her failure.

The solitude began to reveal her fear. She had no way to hide from herself, and the ounce of control she had left began to slip. The tremble began in her hands and slowly enveloped her body. She wrapped herself into a ball to control it but the tremors persisted and the sobbing began. She stared at the water bounce and shatter on the tub. They mixed seamlessly with her tears. She tried to shake it and swallowed the hard lump that had formed. She wiped her hand across her face, and reminded herself that she couldn't allow herself to break down, not yet anyway. It wouldn't do Kelly or anyone any good if she did.

She hastily turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. She hurried through the routine of drying off and haphazardly threw on her clothes. She realized how useless her hand really was when she tried button her blouse. Her frustration to the task began to tip her emotions further. It was another waste of time. She then threw her hair into a messy wet ponytail. Before she fled from the claustrophobic space she glanced into the foggy mirror. She felt some contentment that she couldn't make out her distorted form, and assumed herself to be somewhat presentable.

She silently exited the bathroom and closed the door slightly, letting it remain a crack so some light came into the room. She moved to sit and put on her boots. The bed next to her shifted and JJ let out a slight groan. Emily froze and looked to her but when she didn't wake Emily exhaled and moved to finish. The simple task became another exhausting and frustrating one.

The constant headache she had been ignoring remained at the base of her skull and the dark room began to take an effect on her. With only one boot on she sprawled back against the pillow and let her head sink down into it. She used her good hand to rub her forehead for some relief and took in a few shallow breaths.

She kept the one shoed leg off the bed to remind her not to get too comfortable. The darkness and distance of sleep suddenly became too appealing to ignore. A brief nap was an option and she convinced herself she could set an alarm for twenty minutes, but her body became too heavy and her mind drifted off.

Emily threw the blanket over her body and tucked it in tight. It was warm, but her body was wracked with chills. The air was silent and heavy. She felt herself floating between the two levels of consciousness.

A sound of footsteps around the bed made her freeze. She held her breath and listened. She didn't want to make any sudden movements until she had a grasp on what she heard. It could easily have been JJ getting up. Yet, she couldn't deny the ominous feel that the person exuded. She needed to look to calm herself and remind her they were safe, but her gut kept telling her that they weren't. Her hand searched for her gun, but came up empty. She remembered that it was recovered at the scene and she had planned on retrieving it when she went to the office. She was suddenly regretting falling asleep.

Emily slowly turned over to face the demon when it took charge. His large frozen hand covered her mouth and a sharp blade appeared. He teasingly traced along her cheek. The sensation sent icy shivers down her spine and she becomes paralyzed. How the hell had he been able to get in? She knew it was only a matter of time that he'd reappear, but she didn't expect it so soon.

His mouth twisted into an evil grin and he tilted his head as he whispered down to her. "Remember, its about you."

A whimper caught Emily's attention and she turned her eyes from the beast that hovered over her. There in the dark at the end of the bed was the silouette of JJ. Rope crisscrossed over her arms and chest and tape was tightly adhered to her mouth. She tried to lunge forward to free her, but the tight sheets held her captive. He laughed at her efforts. It was clear he had the control.

In an instant he was behind JJ. His enormous shadow eclipsed her form, and he grasped a handful of hair yanking her head back. With his free hand he held the hunting knife forcefully to the blondes quivering neck. Emily's throat closed and words became lost.

When she finally forced air out a shaky plea drifted with it, but did nothing to deter the man from pressing the blade harder. Its razor edge created a thin line of blood along JJ's pale skin.

"This is so much better," he sighed, "don't you think?"

His vicious voice grated her, but her focus could not be taken from her friend.

Emily saw the fear fill the cerulean eyes in front of her. Nausea washed over her. He was keeping his word, and within seconds about to destroy two lives.

Tis short but not so sweet! I had to cut it off at that point sorry, well not really. ;)

Thank you sooooo much for reading and don't forget to review!