Endgame
"LAUREN" SPOILERS!
Rating is for REAL swearing.
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Chapter 25
"Are you nuts?"
Hotch isn't surprised that Morgan is the first to explode. For all of his cool calm, the man is the most volatile member of the team. This isn't the first time Hotch has seen his agent explode.
"You can't just let her walk into this."
Hotch doesn't say anything because he's not sure what there is to say. It's not about letting her do anything. It's about knowing what has to be done, what she has to do, and letting her work it out. They can't protect her by wrapping her in bubble wrap and cotton. Emily Prentiss isn't a delicate flower and while there are times he wonders if he'd like to treat her like one, she'd throttle him first.
But Morgan's looking at him like he's grown an extra head so he says, "It's not my decision."
"Like hell it isn't!"
"Derek!" Penelope steps in. There's surprise in her voice, like she has no idea her chocolate Adonis can be so insubordinate when she knows he has the utmost respect for Hotch.
"Order her not to go."
"She's not an agent," JJ speaks up, though there's resignation in her voice. "She's not technically under his command."
The entire room knows she'll use it. Regardless of what she feels for Hotch, she's got a different set of priorities on her mind. Getting her life back comes first. Without it, the rest doesn't matter. And she wants to give Declan a chance to live his life too. He deserves it. They all deserve it.
"Garcia, get me everything you can on Quinn Tieriny and College Park Airport," Hotch orders quietly. His eyes are level and serious. "Everything."
She nods. "One everything for the Boss Man coming right up."
"We need a Plan B," Rossi says from his chair. He's been sitting calmly too though Hotch isn't surprised. The man's seen so much in terms of scenarios that have gone right and those that have gone wrong to panic about something like this. He knows that sometimes, no matter how much you care, you have to put your agents on the line.
"How paranoid is Doyle?" JJ inquires.
"I think the better question is how paranoid is Tieriny," Rossi responds. "Doyle may be willing to overlook security for Emily and Declan."
"CIA? She's paranoid," JJ offers. Hell, she went a bit crazy and she was just the State Department.
"What will Doyle do to Tieriny when this is all over?" Reid pipes up. This question is probably the most relevant, because if Doyle is going to kill Tieriny, if she's a loose thread, then she doesn't matter.
"He's still in love with Emily, with Lauren, we saw that. He's obsessed with it," Rossi offers. "Even if Tieriny thinks he loves her, we know and we just experienced how much he doesn't."
"She's a variable," Hotch points out in his low murmur. It doesn't fool any of them. He's arguably the one that's most involved. They haven't missed how closely he's watching Emily, how often he's beside her. He's better at hiding his behaviour, but he's not a saint and he's been showing how much he cares, whether he realizes it or not. "She's an important variable."
Morgan's still blinking in shock, unable to comprehend that they're even discussing this. It's insane. It's putting Emily, the agent they just got back regardless of how angry he was about the whole thing, back into the line of fire that almost got her killed. Doyle 'killed' her once and Morgan knows they're all aware he wouldn't hesitate to do it again. "There's another way."
"That we can come up with in an hour?" JJ shoots back. God, that's barely enough time to come up with a suitable alternative, let alone implement the plan. They're used to thinking fast, adapting, but this is adaptation with a personal threat. And a fourteen-year-old boy.
Morgan shakes his head. "There has to be."
"We all wish there was," Hotch says and even Morgan knows that the calm evenness of the Unit Chief's voice is a clue. Hotch is going to send her out there and protect her. Morgan knows it's something he can't do.
He heads for the door. Maybe if he can't convince Hotch, he can guilt Emily.