TITLE: Criminal Minds – "Darkest Days" (A sequel to Behind the Mask)

AUTHOR: D M Harper

SUMMARY: Agent Prentiss is forced to face her secretive past when it threatens the safety of her BAU colleagues and her beloved family.

RATING: For Mature Readers.

DISCLAIMER: This story was conjured up for reading entertainment only. No money has exchanged hands or bank accounts. There is no profit gained, just fancy flights of imagination. There is no intention to infringe on the copyright of CBS Television Studios or creator Jeff Davis. This writing does feature consensual sexual interaction between two females, so if you are underage or unable to view due to restrictions in your part of the world, be gone and take my sympathy with you. If you find such material offensive, too bad, so sad, you chose to enter this web site of your own free will; hence you have no one to whine to except yourself or a parent if you are caught, so bugger off!

A/N: Please find them time to review and feed the Muse. Apologies for the delay in posting, but life does take centre stage. Thanks to those who leave a message. Hope you enjoy!


Chapter 45

The BAU Team's luck held out and Emily dismissed them at four thirty. She stayed in her office for a further thirty minutes tidying up admin paperwork before travelling home.

The twins greeted her in the kitchen by wrapping themselves around her legs and simultaneously cheering, "Yay mama home."

Placing her portfolio on the counter top, Emily knelt and draped an arm around each child, "Hello my babies. Did you have a good day and behave?"

There was an avalanche of information as the toddlers talked about the visit to the hospital along with building blocks on their new play mat. They finished with telling their mother is was too cold to play in the backyard.

"You go see mommy?" asked Samantha as Emily straightened up.

"Not tonight sweetie. I'll see her tomorrow."

Tossing her left hand into the air, Samantha shrugged her shoulders, "Otay, you play?"

"Can I change my clothes first?"

"Otay, hurry mama." With that instruction, she took off after Jarrod while Emily picked up her work bag.

Maureen met her at the bottom of the staircase with a hug, "How was work dear?"

"Different and interesting. I'll explain after dinner. How was Jill today?"

"Good, but I'll leave it for her to tell you when you call her later."

Black eyebrows arched and Emily's lips formed into a perfect pout, "Now you have me intrigued."

Maureen dismissed the look with a grin, "Maybe, now go change while those kids remain tantrum free."

"All day?" questioned Emily with astonishment.

"It's been a miracle and that makes four days in a row."

"Shit, I hope you didn't just jinx it."

Placing a hand over her mouth, Maureen's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, "Holy crap, me too."

She didn't. The twins were well behaved right up until they fell asleep at which time; Emily filled Maureen in with her news while partaking of a cup of tea in the kitchen.

"Oh well done Emily," Maureen rejoiced. "Jill will be so proud of you. Although it is a shame Aaron, Beth and Jack are moving away."

"Thanks and Aaron seemed genuinely pleased with his decision."

"When is the wedding?"

"Saturday the first of June."

Maureen smiled brightly, "The weather will be lovely that time of year."

"Yes and Beth will look amazing."

"Have they settled on their wedding parties?"

Emily yawned before answering, "Dave will be Aaron's Best man while Derek and Spencer will take on Groomsmen duties. Beth's sister Ellen is to be her Matron of Honour and two friends will be her Bride's Maids."

"It all sounds wonderful. How about you go up and get ready for your phone call with Jill while I lock up down here?"

"Thanks. Oh, before I go. I discovered off Penny that Grace is dating a friend of Dave's."

"Well that's one mystery solved. That woman has kept a stiff upper lip about his identity. All I know is his first name is Charlie."

The smirk on Emily's face didn't go unnoticed, "I have more information."

Maureen tittered at her antics, "Please do go so I can mercilessly torment Grace tomorrow."

"I've never seen this side of you."

"Grace and I often trade snippets of gossip while the twins are napping."

"Well this will help. His full name is Charles Wilson and he is a baker by trade. He owns his own bakery and café in D.C."

"There goes Grace's waist line," joked Maureen while patting her stomach. "Do you have anything else?"

"Considering his profession, that explains why Grace has been joining me for a morning run when I'm home."

"Yes it would and I have a feeling you have something more."

"Penny did a little surveillance by having lunch at his café. She said his doughnuts were heavenly and he's very handsome and tall. Best of all he is originally from Liverpool."

"Great and now I am craving pastry or cake."

Laughing, Emily slapped Maureen on the shoulder, "You'll be jogging with me next."

"Oh no dear, I'll stick to yoga."

Emily was surprised by the words, "Yoga what?"

"Grace taught me a few mind clearing and relaxation poses to relieve my tension."

Emily gave her mother in-law an all knowing nod, "From the kids no doubt; sorry about that."

There was a blush, followed by a grin from Maureen, "Uhm no, and we'll leave it there. Goodnight Emily."

The woman dashed off and Emily was left standing at the counter in shock.

-o-

After showering then dressing in a pair of Jillian's boxers and tee shirt, Emily eased into bed and pulled the covers up over her chest. With two pillows nestled in behind her back, she reached for her cell phone sitting on top of the nightstand. Bringing up Jillian's number, she pressed the telephone icon and waited.

Jillian answered after two rings, "Hey babe."

"Hi honey, how was your day?"

There was a deep inhalation on the other end, "Busy with visitors and therapy."

Exuberance coated Emily's words, "You got out of bed?"

The response was laced with sadness, "Yes, but I only managed a short walk."

"Not up to your usual standard then?" returned Emily, trying to uplift her wife without being too obvious.

"No. I'm only allowed a five minute excursion of the ward. I have to let my liver rejuvenate more before I can attempt a marathon."

Emily's heart ached for Jillian, so she went for it, "You sound a little down honey."

"I'm just tired Em and not used to a snail's pace recovery."

"How about we leave our conversation until I see you tomorrow?"

Expecting some resistance, Emily was taken aback when Jillian delivered her next words without emotion, "Okay, I'll talk to you then, night."

"Sleep well honey, I love you."

"You too."

Placing the phone on the bedside table, Emily turned off the lamp and was left to ponder Jillian's lacklustre demeanour before drifting off.

-o-

With another day of consults behind her, Emily raced home to spend time with the children before dinner then made her way to the hospital after storybook time. Travelling up to the fourth floor, she greeted the night staff on her way to Jillian's room. She was surprised to fine the suite in darkness and her wife asleep.

Nurse Jackie approached her in the doorway, "Jill's had a couple of rough nights and asked for something to help her sleep."

Rolling her eyes, Emily noted, "She didn't say anything to me or her mother."

"My guess is she didn't want to alarm you."

The fine hairs on the nape of Emily's neck stood up, "Alarm me?"

"Let's go to the break room and talk in private."

Emily's heart took a nose dive, "Did something happen that I'm unaware of?"

Leading Emily to a comfortable armchair, Jackie answered, "Jill stumbled quite badly during therapy Sunday afternoon."

With her throat constricting, Emily struggled to get the words out, "Oh crap! Did she hurt herself?"

"No thank goodness, but I think her pride may have taken a hit."

"She told me last night her recovery was slower than she liked."

"With the two injuries to her liver occurring in suck quick succession; it's not unusual for the patient to have to be more restrained during physio. Jill pushed it a bit too far and suffered the consequence of extreme fatigue and her legs gave out."

"Shit, Jill told me she was only up for five minutes."

"That is correct."

"Thank you for informing me Jackie, I really appreciate it."

"I thought it was the best thing to do. I've seen how devoted you are to one another and noticed Jill retreating since the fall."

Getting up, Emily neared the exit, "You did the right thing and I'll visit tomorrow night."

"I'll see you then and keep an eye on your wife in the meantime."

"Thanks again." Emily's thoughts were all over the place as she exited the building and headed for her car. She was concerned for the pain Jillian had experienced on one hand, and on the other; she was upset that she hadn't mentioned it.

-o-

Maureen was dumbfounded when Emily gave her the news while putting away her washed tea cup, "Why the hell would she keep that from us?"

"I suspect she is upset and I have a feeling her nightmares may have returned," reasoned Emily desolately.

"Fuck," whispered Maureen. "I'll broach the subject with her tomorrow and call you afterwards."

"I'll go see Chelsea and ask if she can visit Jillian," suggested Emily with a bob of her head.

"Good idea and I'll have Grace stay here with the kids."

"All right and I'll go to the hospital straight from work."

"Then that's the plan. Our girl needs a swift kick up the ass."

"It seems so," agreed Emily as she leaned in and embraced her mother in-law. "I'm off to bed, goodnight."

"Goodnight dear."

Once Emily moved out of the room, Maureen collected her phone off the bench and called Malcolm. Naturally, he was troubled when told what was going on and he promised to fly in for the weekend.

-o-

The BAU Team caught a case overnight, but thankfully, it was a local matter in conjunction with D.C. Metro Police. Jennifer got to work alongside her husband for two days before the UNSUB responsible for three murders, the first carried out in Dallas, made the mistake of being captured on security camera after slaying his fifth victim in Takoma.

Garcia was able to identify him as Jordan Shipper, twenty eight, born and raised in Oak Cliff, Dallas. He was employed as a labourer and was working in construction.

His stressor turned out to be the failed marriage he'd suffered twelve months earlier and the resulting new relationship his ex-wife Nora had recently established. Her boyfriend Walter Denton was victim number one. His older brother Darren was next followed by their father James. Shipper was not a suspect at that stage of the investigation. Evidence was still being collected and examined. The choice of weapon was identified as an Opinel Carbon Blade No. 8 camp knife. It had not be located after a thorough search of the kill sites and surrounding areas.

A heartbroken Nora had fled Oak Cliff to visit her brother Daniel Trader in D.C. He and his wife Sharon became victims four and five while DNA taken from blood drops at the scene of James' murder confirmed the presence of Shipper in his home.

As the evidence built, Shipper had followed Nora to Takoma, and had immediately bludgeoned Daniel to death when he gained entry to his house via the back door. Sharon and Nora were not home at the time, and the former was stabbed in the right kidney while approaching her vehicle in the car park situated in the rear of the office building where she worked as an accountant.

The Team closed in on Shipper and apprehended him as he zeroed in on his next prey … Nora. She was staying overnight with a friend when her ex-husband attempted to make his ingress to the apartment via the fire escape the following morning.

Garcia had managed to track down Shipper's car through traffic CCTV and Spencer made the connection to Veronica Main, a family friend and Nora while analysing the former's phone logs. The race was on as Penelope called Veronica to apprise her of the situation.

The case wrapped up a little past seven Thursday night after Agents and Officers converged on Main's apartment building and located Shipper crouched outside the bedroom window trying to pry it open with a screwdriver. Trapped, the killer surrendered without fanfare and was taken into custody. The knife was discovered in the pocket of the trousers Shipper was wearing. It was eight o'clock in the morning and after interviews and paperwork had been completed; Emily arrived home for a belated Thanksgiving Dinner with her friends and family as two toddlers valiantly attempted to stay awake at the table.

-o-

Emily was putting away the last of the clean dishes when Maureen joined her.

"I'm sorry I wasn't available to take your calls the past few days," apologised Emily.

"No need, I understood you were busy. At least you managed bedtime stories with the twins."

A smile spread across Emily's lips, "Alex was kind enough to step in for me and deal with the media interviews so I could call. How was Jill today?"

"She was excited to see Jarrod and Sam and appeared to be feeling better."

"Appeared?" queried Emily as the two women settled on the couch in the living room.

"Oh, she put on a brave face for an hour before signs of discomfort showed on her face."

"Crap, did the kids behave?"

"Yes. I think they also detected their mother wasn't quite right. Jarrod cried on the way home and said he hurt mommy."

Tears fell from brown eyes, "It breaks my heart to know he feels guilty."

"Mine too, so I called Jillian once we arrived home and she spoke to him for some time."

"Did you hear the conversation?"

"Yes and Jill was so gentle in explaining accidents to him. He was much happier afterwards."

"She's so awesome with him," spruiked Emily with a grin.

"I'm very proud of her and your parenting skills," returned Maureen.

"We've learnt from you and Malcolm. Heaven knows my mother never won any "Mother of the Year" awards."

Maureen laughed at the appraisal, "Yes, but she is certainly making up for it now."

"True and she'll be flying home in the next couple of days and staying until after the New Year."

"Wonderful."

Emily's voice dropped, "Did you manage to speak with Jill about her withdrawal?"

There was a shake of blonde hair, "Oh no, she was sneaky enough to avoid that subject."

"I'll bring it up when I call," noted Emily with an eye roll.

"Uhm, Jill asked me to tell you not to phone tonight."

"What?" questioned a somewhat taken aback Emily.

"She said she'd be asleep."

"Nightmares," murmured Emily. "That is why she is taking sleeping pills."

"I agree. Did you manage to talk to Chelsea?"

"I did and she is visiting tomorrow morning."

"Excellent, hopefully she can help."

"Time will tell. I think I'll head up to bed."

"Goodnight dear."

"Night."

-o-

Slumber did not come easily once Emily was in bed. Her thoughts remained focused on her wife's struggle to recover both physically and mentally. Emily's constant tossing and turning got the better of her. Getting up, she dressed in black jeans, a white tee shirt, socks and boots and a navy blue sweater before knocking on Maureen's bedroom door and informing her she was off to the hospital.

Maureen gave her a hug, "Good girl. It's about time you acted. I'll see you in the morning."

With a sly grin, Emily replied, "You were waiting for me to realise I shouldn't take a back seat, weren't you?"

"I was. Now go talk to your wife."

Emily didn't need to be told twice. She ran down the stairs with determination and a smile the width of the Nile River.

-o-