Disclaimer: I don't own them...unfortunately.
AN: First of all, massive apologies for the huge delay in posting. My life has been insane in recent weeks. Hopefully things will begin to settle down a bit now giving me some time to write again. Thank you to all those who reviewed or sent me a PM...I hope this is worth the wait. Enjoy. :o)
Chapter 26
Hotch climbed out of the SUV, closely followed by Reid and Rossi. As the trio made their way over to the steps of Garcia's apartment block, Emily stood to meet them. As soon as Hotch was close enough, he reached out and placed his hand on her shoulder in a comforting gesture.
Hotch read the unasked question on the brunette's face. "This is more than a team, we are a family and we look after our own." Emily reached her hand up to rest against his briefly in a silent thanks for not only his presence but also for the words of reassurance that she needed to hear. "Let's get the others and make a move." He gave a gentle squeeze of her shoulder before turning his attention to the others now filing out of the building.
As they made their way towards the SUVs, Emily stopped them. "Wait, there's something we need to do before we go." As the assembled group turned to the brunette, she explained her plan before they all divided up into the three vehicles and setting off. Each offering their own silent prayers that in the next few hours their nightmare would come to an end.
JJ found herself staring at the ceiling of the room for what felt like an eternity. She turned her head to glance at the red digits on the clock beside her. She sighed and shifted as best she could in the bed without causing herself too much pain. Normally when she couldn't sleep she would just get up and either go for a run or read through some of the case files that were always within reach. Lying there in the sterile hospital room, she had neither option available to her. Glancing over at the clock again she noticed the TV remote, shifting slightly towards the edge of the bed to be able to reach it. She started the flick through the channels, hoping to find something to take her mind off all of the events of recent times enough to allow her to get some sleep. Her thumb stopped as a voice that she would never be able to forget echoed through the room. Her whole body frozen with the exception of the shake now clear in her hands.
"...thought the pain of the knife as it sliced into my skin was the worst pain imaginable. I was wrong. I had to watch as the life drained out of my girlfriend right in front of me. All I could do was watch as her blood stained her shirt, slowly spreading out until it was covered. The tears slipped from her eyes as she begged me to make it stop. I can still hear those cries at night, still see the whole scene play out in my mind."
JJ could feel herself breathing rapidly and her heart pounding in her chest. She fumbled to try to turn the TV off but managed to drop the remote due to the shake in her hands.
"It was years later that the FBI's elite team from the behavioural analysis unit finally discovered that George Foyet was in fact not a victim of the Reaper but the Reaper himself. The story of the Reaper didn't end there however. Despite being arrested and placed into custody, Foyet escaped and vanished for months before finally resurfacing here in Virginia. While we still don't know the full details of what transpired between his escape and tonight, we do know that there are more bodies to identify and two federal agents are left fighting for their lives. After the break we will be taking a look at what we have managed to piece together about the reign of the Reaper."
JJ turned to the door as it opened and a nurse came rushing into the room. "Mrs LaMontagne? Are you ok?" The nurse came over to the bed and checked the machines readings, taking in the look on the blonde patients face.
"Turn it off." JJ managed to get out through her rapid breaths.
The nurse frowned in confusion for a moment before noticing the TV playing and the remote that had fallen onto the edge of the bed. She lifted the control and shut the TV off. "I need you to calm down Mrs LaMontagne. You are putting a lot of stress on your lungs."
JJ shook her head and tried to sit up. "I...I need to get out. I need...to see..." She was stopped as the nurse restrained her as gently as she could while pushing the call button.
As soon as the doctor came into the room, the nurse informed him of the situation. "Mrs LaMontagne you really need to calm down or I'll have to sedate you."
"No...I need...to...I need..." She struggled against the arms holding her down. The next thing she is aware of is a sharp pain in her arm. Glancing down she saw the needle being withdrawn and almost instantly started to feel her limbs growing heavy and the room fading. "Em...need..."
"She's ruptured her stitches. We're going to need to take her..." JJ couldn't hear the rest of what the doctor said as the darkness claimed her once more.
The vehicles pulled up on the quiet street. Emily was the first out and made her way up to the door before knocking. She saw a light go on and waited for the door to open.
"Agent Prentiss?" The confused voice of the nanny who had obviously just been woken by her knocking at the door.
"Mary, I'm sorry to wake you at this hour but we have come to take Henry to see JJ."
The nanny frowned. "Mr LaMontagne hasn't called to tell me you were coming by. I need to call him to check first."
Emily was about to speak when she felt an hand rest on her arm. She glanced back and met the same blue eyes as JJ accompanied with a gentle shake of the head. As she turned back to the door she noticed the nanny had stepped inside to retrieve the phone to call Will. The brunette steeled herself for what she knew was coming.
"Mr LaMontagne? It's Mary. I'm so sorry to wake you but I have Agent Prentiss..." She stopped speaking as Will said something to her before making her way to the doorway. "He'd like to speak with you." She handed the phone to the agent.
"Will."
"I told you to leave and to not come into my family's life again Agent Prentiss. If you think that you can flash your badge and kidnap the baby you are mistaken. I'll call the police if you dare to set foot inside that house and lay a finger on him. Do you understand me?" His voice held a level of contempt that took Emily by surprise.
Before Emily could respond, JJ's father took the phone from her hand. "William?"
"Yes, who is this?"
"This is George Jareau, Jenny's father." He paused for a second as he heard an intake of breath on the end of the line. "I don't know everything that is going on here but I do know that my grandson will be better off with us than a nanny."
"Mr Jareau, I hired the best nanny to take care of Henry while I spent my time caring for JJ. I know you want to look after the baby but..."
"Let me stop you there. My Jenny was nothing if not prepared for any situation. I have in my hand right now the legal papers that grant myself and my wife Henry's powers over Henry should anything happen to Jenny. So I will be taking my grandson tonight and his family will look after him. Is that clear enough?"
"I'm his father. You can't just take away my rights as his parent."
"Actually William, the moment you walked out of the BAU offices and left Henry there without any word about when you would return and neglected his care for those few short days was the final straw. Jenny had already compiled a file which was passed to the family court judge for an emergency petition of care to be transferred from the parents to us and it was granted. So as I said, we will be taking our grandson with us."
"I'll appeal this."
"You are entitled to do that when the court reopens at 9am. Now, where is Jenny?" He listened as there was a click and then the sound of the dial tone in his ear. He handed the phone back to the nanny. "I'm terribly sorry that you are caught up in this mess Mary. Here are the papers from the court granting my wife and I temporary guardianship of Henry until such a time that his mother is well enough to resume her responsibilities." He passed the papers over from his pocket to the stunned looking nanny.
Mary took the papers and glanced at them. Deciding that they looked real and did say that the Jareau's had been awarded guardianship over Henry she stepped back to allow them in, handing the papers back to Mr Jareau as he entered.
"I'll help you pack a bag for him."
Emily nodded and followed the nanny up to Henry's nursery. The pair set about packing some clothes and other important items into the bag that JJ kept for when she took Henry away. "There's more going on here than I know isn't there Agent Prentiss?"
The brunette turned to meet the other woman's gaze. "Far more than I could explain right now."
As the nanny zipped up the bag, she watched as Emily reached into Henry's crib and lifted him out into her arms. As she started to make her way out of the room, she paused and turned to look at the other woman. "Thank you for looking after him. He was in good hands." Emily watched as a small smile appeared on the nanny's face before making her way down the stairs to meet the others.
"What happened?" Will's voice echoed around the quiet hospital room.
"The nurse came to check on your wife when the alarms connected to her monitors started to sound. She found her in a state of panic. We tried to calm her down but it was to no avail. She managed to tear her stitches in her struggle and so we had no choice but to sedate her." The doctor explained the events of the evening to the former detective.
"What set her off? She was fine when I left here earlier." Will could feel his anger rising at the way events seemed to be spiralling out of his control.
"The TV. There was something on the TV." Will turned to face the nurse that had spoken, waiting for more. "I don't know what was on, it was just commercials when I came in."
Will turned his attention back to the bed where JJ rested seemingly peacefully. "What happens now?" His voice became calmer as he looked at the blonde.
"We repaired her stitches but due to the extensive damage caused by her injuries, we need to take her for a scan to ensure there was no further damage caused in her struggles." The doctor paused for a moment. "Assuming the scan comes back clear then we can bring her back to her room but we need to consider how we can prevent any further complications."
Will turned to meet the doctor's gaze. "What are you suggesting?"
"If your wife demonstrates similar behaviour again then we might have to consider putting her into a sedated state until her injuries have healed sufficiently. I also suggest that she has a psych consult to assess her current mental state and determine the cause of the panic attack."
Will nodded at the doctors words. "Whatever you think is best."
The doctor reached over to take the clipboard from the nurse. "If you could sign these then we can organise the transport over to the local hospital for her scan."
Will took the board and signed the forms. As he handed them back to the doctor, he waited until he was left in the room alone with her. He brushed some strands of hair out of her face, allowing his fingers to run across the pale skin of her cheek. "I know you might not believe me but all this is for the best JJ. I'm sure that once you have spoken to the psychiatrist then he will agree that it is in your best interests to find an alternative career far away from all those people who let this happen." Leaning down, he placed a kiss on her forehead. "We will be able to start again JJ, just me and you."