Chapter 8

"How long until the next one?" JJ asked, her voice a dull monotone as she stared out the window. It was now a little past seven thirty in the morning and the BAU team had already cleared the first three properties on their list. Phone calls to Hotch and Reid back at headquarters continued to bring nothing but bad news as truck after truck was cleared. The other search teams who had stayed closer to town had already cleared their so-called 'red list' and were now working through those on the 'blue list', but because their first property was half an hour from the precinct, and they then had to traverse back and forth across the rural farmland to get to each subsequent property on their list, they still had two more owners to check out.

JJ knew that the elimination of potential suspects was a good thing; that it meant they were closer to finding Emily – but she couldn't suppress her fear that they were going to be too late.

That they wouldn't get to Emily in time.

"Ten minutes or so," Rossi answered, turning around in the passenger's seat to look at her. JJ had grown quieter and quieter after each house they visited, and he knew that she was barely hanging on by a thread. "Are you going to be okay to do this?" he asked gently. There was no hint of accusation or disappointment in his tone, just measured understanding and concern.

JJ nodded and looked up Rossi. His gaze was warm and unflinching, and she was glad that the day was uncharacteristically bright so that she was able to shield her eyes with her sunglasses. "Of course," she lied. She would be, once they pulled up to the address and another jolt of adrenaline pulsed through her veins, but for now… now, she wasn't. But that didn't matter.

Nothing mattered, except finding Emily.

She looked out the window as they flew up a winding mountain pass and silently willed Morgan to go even faster, despite the fact that he was already pushing the limits of what was safe as they raced up the deserted road. "What do we know about this next guy?"

Rossi sighed and turned toward the papers on his lap. "Ben Wyatt. Age 38. Works as an attending DVM at an emergency veterinarian clinic in Banks. Lives on five acres toward the top of this mountain."

JJ nodded as she processed the information. "And you think a vet has enough knowledge of human anatomy to sever limbs like our unsub?"

Rossi pursed his lips and shrugged. "He flunked out of med school in his third year but he did go back and managed to become a vet. He has spent more than his share of time in an anatomy lab doing dissections, and he's as good of a bet as anybody else with a full-blown medical degree."

JJ licked her lips and nodded. "Great. Does this guy have a record of any kind?"

"Just a speeding ticket that he got two years ago," Rossi said, as he reread what little information they had on Benjamin Wyatt.

"Ya know," Morgan said thoughtfully, "his house is a hell of a long way from his office."

JJ went back to staring blankly out the window and only perked up when she felt the car begin to slow as Morgan got ready to turn onto an even narrower, even less traveled dirt road. All three of their head whipped around as a black truck passed them going the other direction. "Was that…"

"A Ford," Morgan said, his voice flat. "And the front end was perfectly fine. It's not what we're looking for."

JJ sighed and shook her head, silently berating herself for being silly enough to hope that they would just magically stumble upon their unsub. "Right."

JJ's quiet desperation was evident in her tone and Rossi turned back around to regard her carefully. "We will find her, JJ."

JJ nodded and sucked her lower lip between her teeth as she turned her face back to her window, unable and unwilling to put voice to her fears that they might not find Emily in time, in case they might somehow jinx their operation to try and save her.

It felt like it took them forever to wind their way up the narrow gravel driveway that led to Benjamin Wyatt's house, and all three of the FBI agents tensed as they pulled to a stop in front of a well-kept, split-log cabin. Towering pines surrounded the small clearing where the house was situated and it reminded JJ of the little hunting cabin her grandfather had kept in the rural mountains of Pennsylvania back home.

"I don't see a garage, do you?" Morgan asked as he studied the area.

"No," Rossi said, frowning. "Let's do this. JJ, call Garcia and see if she can pull up any details about this property, back roads into it, outlying buildings, you know the drill. Morgan and I will go see if Mr. Wyatt is home."

JJ nodded and pulled out her phone as the two men climbed out of the SUV. Her call to Garcia rang through as the two men made their way to the wide stairs that led to the oversized front porch that stretched across the front of the cabin.

"Tell me something good," Garcia answered.

"I wish I could, Pen." JJ sighed. "Look, we're at Ben Wyatt's house in Timber and Rossi wanted me to ask you to check and see if there are any outlying buildings on the property."

"I can do that," Garcia murmured, and JJ could hear the telltale clicking of keyboard keys in the background. "Right… hold on, just have to borrow a satellite from the DOD… and, yes. Come to mama. Okay, I'm inputting the coordinates, zooming in and… I have a visual on your car and the cabin… lemme pan out a bit and… yes. There's a truck parked behind the main house and there is what looks to be a large barn about five hundred yards south southwest of your current position."

"Is there anything else you can tell me?" JJ asked, as she watched Morgan and Rossi peer through the windows of the cabin after their knocks went unanswered.

"It looks like it's in good condition," Garcia murmured. "Functional, not abandoned. And, wait, yeah… there's what looks to be like a logging road from there up higher onto the mountain."

"What's up there?" JJ asked, frowning as she watched Morgan and Rossi start heading back her way. She opened her door and climbed out of the SUV, her boots crunching softly on the gravel.

"A building of some kind," Garcia said after a moment. "I don't know how big because the tree coverage is incredibly dense in the area, but it's definitely something."

"Right, thanks, Pen. I'll let you know if we find anything," JJ said as she hung up the phone. JJ arched a brow at Morgan and Rossi and asked, "Nothing?"

Morgan shook his head. "What did Garcia say?"

"There's a car parked behind the house, a barn about five hundred yards south southwest of here, and that from there there's a logging road or something leading from it up into the hills. She thinks she saw another outbuilding there too."

Rossi nodded thoughtfully and looked at Morgan. "Run around and check the back of the house."

"On it." Morgan took off at a jog around the perimeter of the small cabin. JJ lost sight of him for a moment as he disappeared around the corner and when he came running back out nodding emphatically, she felt her stomach clench.

"Was it there?" Rossi asked as Morgan approached.

Morgan nodded. "Sure was. Black Dodge Ram, complete with a heavy-duty grill guard, that is busted up on the right side."

Rossi nodded and pulled out his phone as he held up a 'wait a minute' finger to JJ and Morgan. "Let me call Hotch," he said, as he turned and walked a few feet away from the younger agents.

JJ sighed and looked around where they stood. The woods were unnaturally quiet and she found the lack of sound to be almost suffocating. There should have been birds chirping at the very least, never mind the occasional snapping branch from passing deer or the rustle of bushes from rabbits or other small forest dwelling creatures. She turned and lifted a hand to block the sun from her eyes as she stared into the woods in the direction where Garcia had said she'd seen a barn, but she couldn't see anything and, having grown up in farm country where everyone had barns, that fact struck her as being incredibly odd. Wyatt had so much land, right here where he could have easily built the outbuilding, and yet he tucked it away in the woods. Why?

"Damn, this place is just out in the middle of fucking nowhere," Morgan muttered as he looked around the clearing.

JJ nodded and took a deep breath as she tried to find any clue that might suggest Emily was here. The truck was a definite cause for concern, but even though she wanted it to mean that they had found their man, she knew that it didn't. "Yeah."

"Hotch is calling the DA and getting us a warrant," Rossi said as he returned to where the two younger agents were standing. "He wants us to wait here until we have a verbal approval, and then we're to search the property from top to bottom."

JJ tensed, her hand slipping to lightly grasp the butt of her gun as she flashed an appraising look at the woods around them. "You think he's our guy."

"I think," Rossi hedged, "that for the leads we have and the options left available to us, that this guy is our best bet. I just want to be safe. A little caution never hurt anybody," he added as his phone rang.

JJ looked at Morgan, asking him with her eyes if he agreed with Rossi's assessment. The burly profiler nodded and turned to look around the area a bit more as Rossi spoke to Hotch on the phone. Rossi's half of the conversation consisted of a lot of 'uh huh's and 'yeah's so it was hard for JJ to follow what was being said, but the predatory smile that tweaked the older profiler's lips as he flipped his phone closed was unmistakable.

"We got the warrant. An electronic copy is being sent to my phone now and we have permission from the DA to go ahead and search the property, including any outbuildings. Chief Johnson is sending his SWAT team up to assist and they will have a paper copy of the warrant on them."

"Do you want to wait for backup?" Morgan asked Rossi, deferring to the older man's decision.

"No," JJ said, unsnapping her holster. "If she's here, I don't want to wait an hour for SWAT to get up here."

Rossi and Morgan shared a look and nodded their agreement with JJ. Neither of them particularly liked the idea of leaving Emily being in the unsub's hands any longer than necessary either. And, as they all were already kitted out with the Kevlar vests, there was no reason to wait. With SWAT or without, they would be going in first and all of their intel told them that their unsub worked alone; so it was an acceptable risk, especially considering the alternative. "Morgan, take point," Rossi said.

"Yes, sir," Morgan said, as he pulled his sidearm from its holster and flicked off the safety. "Start with the house?" he asked, and when Rossi nodded his agreement, he led the way back up to the front door.

He looked over his shoulder at JJ and Rossi, who were both standing behind him with their guns pulled and pointed at the ground, and took a deep breath as he turned back to the thick oak door and pounded three bruising knocks into the wood. "WYATT! THIS IS THE FBI! WE HAVE A WARRANT TO SEARCH THE PREMISIS! OPEN UP!"

Of course, nobody answered, just as nobody had answered moments before, and JJ held her breath to try and steady her nerves as she watched Morgan take a big step back and prepare to kick the door in. The burly agent's boot connected with the door just below the doorknob with a loud thud and it immediately gave under the force of the blow.

They filed into the house with a pinpoint precision that was honed during their years spent together doing this exact same thing, and they broke off to sweep through the small, impeccably kept cabin, opening doors and looking everywhere, each of them yelling 'CLEAR' as yet another room was found to be empty. They reassembled in the small kitchen at the back of the house and JJ pursed her lips as she looked at her teammates.

"Nothing," she said.

"Not yet," Morgan countered, looking expectantly at Rossi. "Barn next?"

Rossi nodded. "Yeah.

Morgan looked out the window above the sink thoughtfully. "South-southwest from where we left the car?"

"That's what Garcia said," JJ said, as she adjusted her grip on the butt of her gun.

"So he can get to it from his back door, but the house is between it and the driveway," Morgan murmured. "That's got to restrict access."

JJ nodded and spoke up, "But it also keeps it easily accessible and out of view from anyone who approaches the front door."

"Yeah," Rossi agreed. "So let's go have a look at it and see why he wants it so far out of sight."

Morgan made a small sound of agreement as he made his way across the kitchen to the back door. He unlocked it and threw it open, and made his way down the steps at a light jog as he immediately spotted a worn path, just wide enough for a car or a truck, that cut through the trees. His boots crunched quietly on the gravel path until they reached the edge of the forest where the rocks gave way to pine needles that absorbed the sound of their approach.

The woods were thick, making it difficult to see around each curve of the path they were following, and because of that they didn't even catch sight of the barn Garcia had spotted from the satellite she'd hijacked until they were practically standing on its doorstep. The building was well tended – the dark gray paint on the exterior was clean and there looked to be no holes in the siding – and it was literally surrounded by trees. JJ could put her hand on the trunk of a towering cedar and reached out with her other to touch the side of the building. It was a complete antithesis for how one normally built in the woods, trees near building meant damage during storms, and the only explanation she could think of for constructing anything this close to the forest would be to hide it from view.

But what was he hiding?

Morgan put a finger to his lips as he pressed his ear to the door and shrugged when he heard nothing. Rossi tapped him on the shoulder and, once he had the younger man's attention, pointed at himself and then gestured that he was going to go around the side backside of the building to check for other exits.

"No," JJ said, her voice a hushed whisper as she understood what it was Rossi was going to do, and she shook her head emphatically when he looked at her in surprise. "No, Rossi. We're not splitting up."

"JJ," Rossi said quietly, "I'll be fine. If this is our guy, evidence and our profile says he works alone – so I'll be fine. I'm not Reid, I know how to take care of myself."

"And I don't?" JJ argued, setting her jaw defiantly as she willed herself to not remember what it had been like to be cornered by those dogs.

"I'm not going in by myself," Rossi said. "I'm just looking around. I'll be back here in five minutes."

"Jayje has a point, Rossi," Morgan muttered. "Let's all go."

Rossi shook his head. "Not necessary. If, by some chance, he has security cameras posted around the building, I don't want him to make a run out the front while we're at the back and unable to see him. I got this. I'll meet you back here and let you know what I found." Not waiting to listen to the younger agents' admittedly well-founded arguments, he tapped his watch and wiggled five fingers at JJ and Morgan before he turned on his heel and walked carefully into the woods, his years of hunting experience coming in useful as each of his steps fell silently on the bed of needles that carpeted the forest floor.

JJ bounced on the balls of her feet, nervous energy making it all but impossible for her to stand still, and she huffed a quiet breath as she felt Morgan's eyes land on her. She met his questioning gaze and shook her head at him, telling him without words that nothing was wrong even though they both knew it was a bold-faced lie, as she lifted her watch to check the time.

One minute down.

Four more to go.

+++/+++\+++

Tears poured from Emily's eyes as she suffered yet another beating in silence. She had lost track of how many punches she'd taken, the staggering blows blended together until they just seemed like a never-ending stream of punishment. Instead of focusing on the pain, she tried her best to keep her thoughts focused on JJ. It was the best plan she had, but as her pain increased with each jarring punch to the ribs and every bell-ringing shot to the head that she took, it became an increasingly difficult task to manage and she was grateful when she heard the telltale sound of her captor's footsteps walking away from her, his breath falling in heavy pants as he recovered from the effort he was putting into beating her.

She looked down at her lap, her thighs already bright red and bruised from where she had been repeatedly kicked with his steel-toed boots, and let out a quiet sob. She had yet to make a sound more than a gasp while he hit, kicked, and punched her, but she was well aware of the fact that she was fast approaching the end of her ability to remain silent.

She had no idea how long she had been in the dark room, being verbally taunted and physically assaulted by her captor, but it felt like it had been an eternity. She was tired, so tired, and every time he took a break from punching and kicking her, she had to fight to remain conscious. Her body saw the reprieve as a chance to rest, but she knew better than to give in to unconsciousness because her captor would undoubtedly punish her more severely for not playing into his game as little as she was, so she did everything she could to stay awake.

She screwed her eyes shut and drew a deep, ragged breath, welcoming the stab of pain that flared through her as her lungs filled with air. The pain kept her awake. The pain kept her aware. And she encouraged it, taking another deep breath, as deep as she could manage, the throbbing of her protesting ribs a blessing in disguise as she used it to keep her tenuous hold on consciousness.

The sound of approaching footsteps drew her eyes up from her lap and she resolutely stared into the dim light that surrounded her, her eyes boring into the inky shadows as she waited for her captor's return. Her heart skipped a beat in her chest and her breath hitched in her throat as she caught sight of the flash of a blade, the light over her head reflecting brilliantly off the cool, curved steel.

"Ready for more?" her captor asked, as the toes of his shoes broke the perimeter of the circle where light became shadow.

Emily licked her lips and sat up straighter, doing her best to mentally prepare for what she knew was coming next.

+++/+++\+++

Outside the barn, the muffled sound of a strangled scream shattered the tense silence that had befallen JJ and Morgan as they waited for Rossi's return, and JJ's head snapped up to stare at the metal door in front of them. Rossi still had a minute left on his window, but she ignored it completely as she reached for the handle and gave it a twist, somehow not at all surprised to find that it was unlocked, and pushed it open.

She didn't even look at Morgan as she slid into the space, her gun pointed into the darkness that filled the cavernous outbuilding. She could hear Morgan following right behind her and she squinted into the shadows as she moved out of the weak beam of sunlight that streamed through the open door behind them. Her head was on a swivel, trying to figure out where the sound had come from, but she couldn't see anything. She hated to pull out her Maglite and make herself a target more than she already was, but she wasn't going to accomplish anything stumbling around in the dark so she reached back with her left hand and retrieved the thin black flashlight from its case on her belt.

Behind her, Morgan had the same idea and the twin beams of their lights sliced through the murky shadows that filled the barn to reveal a plethora of woodworking tools – a belt sander, a scroll saw, a drill press, and a table saw amongst other power tools, and a multitude of awls, chisels, and hammers. A door at the far end of the building flew open and both JJ and Morgan turned to level their sights on the person who stormed inside, their fingers riding the line on their triggers until they recognized the intruder as being Rossi.

JJ sighed and turned her light back onto the space around them and her heart skipped a beat in her chest as her light landed on a dark mass about midway down the northern wall of the building. It looked like a room of some kind and just as she took a step toward it, another scream tore through the air, the pained pitch of the wounded cry making her heart seize in her chest.

She hesitated for only the briefest of moments before she broke into a run, covering the distance to the small room in mere seconds. She flashed her light back and forth over the outcropped room as she approached, gauging its dimensions to be about twenty feet square, as she easily picked out the door that was set in the middle of the wall that faced into the barn. She reached for the doorknob, ready to rush inside, and she jumped in surprise when Morgan's hand slapped her own out of the way.

JJ turned to glare at the profiler but never got the chance as he swept his left arm across the front of her body and moved her out of his way. She seethed at the impetuous move, but knew better than to fight as she slid into position behind him. One, it would give away their position. Two, she knew that he was just as desperate to find Emily as she was, and she also knew that he had promised Emily that he would take care of her should something happen. This, she figured, was his way of protecting her and doing right by his promise to Emily. She just hated the idea of not being the first one through the door in case it was Emily on the other side.

Morgan could feel JJ glaring daggers into his back but he ignored her as he wrapped his hand around the oblong doorknob and gave it a gentle turn, hoping that it wouldn't make a sound. So far, they had actually be remarkably quiet, and if the unsub – or whomever was behind this door – hadn't heard them yet, he wanted to have as much surprise on his side as he possibly could.

Go. Go. Go. Go. Go! JJ chanted silently as Morgan seemed to take too long to open the door. She licked her lips and tightened her grip on her gun as she watched the door begin to move and as soon as Morgan dove through the space, she was right on his tail, her gun aimed into the heart of the room.

"FBI! FREEZE!"