"Penelope, Baby, what's wrong?"

She didn't know what to say or how to say it. She had a sudden urge to flee the room but that would only worry him. She'd promised him that she'd go home to rest now she wish she had.

"Penelope, answer me, what's going on?"

"Uh…I'm sorry Handsome, I didn't mean to wake you."

"I thought you were going home?"

She began shutting down her laptop and nervously packing her bag as he watched her puzzled.

"I did, I did, and I am, I am…right now!"

"Penelope?"

"I was just playing one of my games…you know how I am when I start…"

"Stop…right now!"

She froze he wasn't buying any of it and he wasn't going to let her out of this room until she told him what was going on. So, she turned to face him not sure where to begin.

Mar's Bistro – Evening –

"So, what do we know about this Jason Morgan guy?"

JJ had convinced Reid and Hotch to join her for a drink before heading home and now here they sat in their favorite booth unwinding and exhaling before reentering the real world.

"Rossi says he's the best there is. His success rate is phenomenal…ninety-eight percent…which if you really examine it may or may not be all that impressive if he only takes cases that he knows he…"

"We get it, Spence. I just think it's odd that his last name is Morgan, he's from Chicago and don't you guys think he kind of looks like Morgan?"

"Okay, you two, enough. Let's order another round I'm really not interested in discussing Morgan's look-a-like therapist!"

The three shared a rare laugh with the man that rarely laughed as they signaled the waitress for another round.

Potomac General –

"Derek? Say something."

He remained silent with his eyes fixed on the screen illuminated with all the evidence he needed to prove that Jason Morgan was his brother. She didn't know what to say or how to begin helping him process the information in front of him.

"There has to be some mistake…"

He knew there was no mistake and suddenly he felt as if his entire life had turned upside down.

"I'm sorry, Derek…"

"This is crazy, my mother has another son…"

She watched the emotions dance in his eyes; anger, confusion, hurt…if Reid were here he'd be able to tell them the odds of a long-lost brother appearing out of nowhere and becoming your physical therapist after you were injured in a car accident. She couldn't begin to process it all and she could only imagine what was going through his mind at that moment.

Everyone had a past and secrets but she'd never imagined Fran being someone with anything like this hidden away; somehow she felt a twinge of disappointment. Gently she took his hand in hers wondering what other secrets his mother was hiding.

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. This is too much! What's next, huh? What's going to happen next? I'm not even sure I'm really who I think I am!"

She was worried he didn't need this now. Just when he'd seemed to get his head together and was ready to fight to get on his feet, the rug was pulled from under him.

"When I started looking around…I never dreamed I'd find anything like this…"

It struck him that she would be interested enough in Jason to go hunting for information about him he'd never admit it but he was jealous.

"Why did you?"

"I don't know I was curious, I guess."

"Were you interested in him, Garcia?"

"Oh no you don't Mister! I've been waiting on you for years to notice me you don't get to go there with me!"

She was right but it didn't make it right in his twisted definition of loyalty and…love…not when it came to her…to them.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"

"I know exactly what you meant, Derek Morgan! To answer your question, yes, I was interested but not the way you think."

"Then in what way?"

"He just seemed…I don't know familiar. He reminds me of you in a lot of ways and besides, you know me I'm a hacker, I'm nosey; it's what I do, I look for things, people."

"Okay, okay, fine."

He seemed to be lost in thought now as he relaxed into the pillow.

"I need to talk to my mother."

"Yeah I know you do but it's late and it can wait until tomorrow."

He wanted desperately to protest but he saw that look in her eyes that said, the matter was closed and soon he resigned himself to the fact that he wasn't going to win this one and drifted off into a fitful sleep.

"I told you, D, I'm the only one you can depend on!"

The sound of Carl Buford's laugh rang in his ears.

"Oh, did you think I'd forgotten about you? I've been here, watching…waiting for you to come to your senses!"

…then the laugh again.

"I'm not going anywhere…you belong to me and I won't rest until we're together again!"

Home of David Rossi-

He brushed a few strands of red hair away planting a soft kiss on her forehead. He loved lying here with her especially after they'd exhausted themselves making love. Love had never been easy for him in the past especially with his job and his ambition to make a name for himself in the bureau. He'd learned a lot in his failures and one lesson was not to take anything for granted. He was ready to try again putting all the lessons he'd learned to good use and the woman now resting in his arms was the only one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Her story of her past had taken even this seasoned profiler by surprise. He hadn't expected anything like that to be lurking in her past and it was no wonder that she'd spent so much time and energy keeping it hidden from everyone. Still, it had not affected how he felt about her and he was going to be there for her no matter what happened next.

"I have to try again."

He didn't realize that she was awake.

"What?"

"Jason, I've got to try to talk to him again and make him listen."

Dave smiled with pride as he kissed her on the top of her head. She hadn't disappointed him. He knew she would do the right thing in the end.

"Good."

"I've made so many foolish decisions in my life, Dave. I should have never waited this long to see him…I should have never given him up. I just didn't know how to do it…to accept him after what had happened.

"Then that's what you tell him, Bella."

"What if he won't listen?"

"Then keep telling him until he does."

"I need to tell Derek and the girls as soon as possible. I just hope they can forgive me."

"They'll forgive you."

"I wish I could be as sure as you are."

"Trust me, it's all going to work out."

Windsor Hotel –

Jason couldn't sleep he'd tossed and turned for over an hour still sleep eluded him. So, throwing the blankets back he got out of bed and headed toward the shower maybe it would help him relax.

The hot water was almost too hot to tolerate and he squinted until his body got use to the extreme heat pounding against his caramel back. The water cascading over his body and trickled down his left shoulder over the lion tattoo making it appear as if the beast was crying. His conversation with David Rossi was still bouncing around in his head and he felt lighter some how. He'd never spoken that much and that honestly about his life. He felt beholden in some way to the man who'd brought him here all the way from Chicago not understanding at the time the magnitude of his actions. His conversation with Fran earlier had been a disaster and he wondered had her lover not inadvertently brought him to town if he would have ever seen her again.

He continued to relish in the hot steamy water a while longer oddly amused at how things seemed to work out. He'd always wanted the chance to face his mother and when he'd finally gotten the chance he ran. He wanted to talk to her again he wouldn't be satisfied leaving things unfinished. David Rossi's words made him open his eyes and admit that he wasn't the only one who'd suffered. The family he'd always dreamed of, little boy's dreams of being loved and welcomed into the loving arms of his mother, was now more than wishful thinking and he wanted them…all of them and now that he was so close he wouldn't rest until he had them…he only prayed that they wanted him too.