A/N: Good grief it has been a hot minute. I am so sorry that this chapter is super super late. I hadn't been feeling the 'Hotchniss Buzz' lately and when i don't feel the buzz, I lose all inspiration to write. I think quarantine and self isolation has breathed the inspiration back into me. Anyway... here is the continuation of the last chapter.

The trip to Penelope's apartment was quiet. The latest pop songs played in the background, but nobody was really listening. Everyone was in their own thoughts, their own memories, their own world.

Madi gazed out the window, glancing at the many houses zooming by, wondering what sort of life those people lived. Did the children in those houses have both their parents? Had they travelled the world? Were there secrets in their families?

Once arriving at Penelope's apartment, Madi strolled around, glancing at the miniature icons popped up around the place; unicorns on the coffee table, piggy mugs lining the benches, a purple skull lying on the bookshelf on its side. There were even tiny troll dolls sitting atop the television, with their plastic legs only just dangling over the screen.

She remembered watching the movie 'trolls' with her mom when it first came out. She had taken her to the movie theatre, buying a full tub of popcorn and ice-creams for each of them. Mint chocolate chip for Emily and chocolate caramel for Madi. To this day, it remained one of her favourite movies, even if she had gotten a little older.

Penelope noticed Bailey gasp as she spotted the trolls. It seemed odd, those troll dolls had been there for years and she had only just seemed to notice them. "Penelope… How long have you had these for?" Madi asked excitedly. Penelope pushed her confusion to the side and placed the bottles of lemon lime and bitters onto the coffee table.

"Hmmm… A while, I guess… You seemed to only just notice them huh?" Madi showed a toothy grin and smoothed the pink troll's long hair. Madison mentally cursed herself, of course Bailey would have noticed the trolls. It wasn't like she was here every other weekend.

"You do realise I notice something new every time I walk into your apartment… I mean it's not like anything ever stays the same." Madi tried to justify. "Where's JJ?"

"In the bathroom, hey Bailey can I ask you a question?" Penelope asked settling herself down on the couch, the tall girl looked back at her, her eyes intense with wonder and mystery. It was the same look that Emily always had when a new case arrived. She would just think, and you could see the dots and crosses connecting in her head.

"Are you absolutely sure that you really want to know what happened to your mom?" As she glanced over at the girl standing by the trolls, she was noticing subtle hints that were not characteristic of Bailey. She was biting the tips of her fingernails- it was something that everyone had noticed in Emily back when she was in the BAU- but it wasn't usually something Bailey did. She was usually one for pacing around uncontrollably when she was nervous. She was also someone who would chat their head off, typically about the people at school and everyone in the BAU. She hadn't heard one comment about either of those topics, and it was starting to concern her. Hotch was right. Something was up with Bailey.

Madi nodded as the door to the bathroom suddenly opened and emerged JJ, smoothing her hands over her shirt like she was brushing off dust. She let out a breathy sigh and walked over to where the other two girls were.

"Hey… What's up with you two? Did something happen?" JJ asked when she sensed tension.

"How do we explain this situation to her JJ?" Penelope said blandly. If the tension in the room wasn't there, it was now. It was as if the room suddenly chilled and darkened. JJ sat down and motioned for Madi to come sit down on the couch too. She cuddled next to JJ- who put an arm around the back of her shoulders.

There was a heavy silence as JJ pondered. The more she thought about the past, the more memories were starting to flood in about those few dreadful weeks. It was as if the dam in her mind was starting to overflow and these memories were only the prelude to something much larger. Madi sat there, itching to bite her nails, but resisted considering that Penelope had noticed the 'odd behaviour' too. After all, they did work in the field of profiling.

"Your mom was being blackmailed."

Her mouth could have dropped wide open, but it didn't. She just sat there, her face blank as a canvas. It was like she wasn't surprised at all. Part of her knew that something terrible had to have happened to her mother for her to leave her family, but blackmail? She thought she knew her own mother quite well, but was blackmail seriously what drove her away? It had to be more complicated than someone wanting money from her.

"Bailey?" Penelope asked with large eyes- mentally cursing herself for getting into this situation. Hotch was gonna kill her if he ever found out what she had just told his daughter.

"What have you got Garcia?" Hotch rushed into the room, standing behind the chair with his arms crossed. He had just lost his partner, lost one of his daughters, yet no emotion showed on his blank face. Penelope wanted to turn around and hug him. Hug him for Emily. Hug him for Madison. Hug him for everything that had happened. But she couldn't.

As she typed and typed on the keyboard, she shook her head. "Nothing that's gonna help us. I've traced every contact that she had on her phone. No phone calls to anyone. No texts. No emails. She must have used a burner."

"Have you tracked GP- "

"GPS Location? Yeah no such luck there."

"You read the letter? Anything stick out to you?" Penelope shook her head.

"No… NO… NO… Just nothing." She stopped typing and swivelled around in her chair. "Look Hotch… I don't know what you are going through right now, but I am trying my best. I wish I understood what was going through her head, I mean… This isn't like Emily… She wouldn't give into a blackmailer…"

"Not unless the blackmailer was threatening her family…" The air thickened around them and she struggled to catch her breathe.

"Why would she take Little Madi with her?" Penelope asked with tears prickling at the corners of her eyes. Hotch didn't react and just slowly shook his head- making eye contact with a pen on the table.

"I don't know…" He whispered. "Maybe… This is what the blackmailer wanted… To ruin her life. Maybe the only thing keeping us all safe right now is being apart…"

"Do you understand? You understand what blackmailing is right?" Penelope asked- her eyebrows high and her eyes fearful. Madison nodded slowly.

"That's why she left? Because of blackmail?" Both older women slowly nodded and made eye contact with the ground.

"Your dad… He wouldn't want us telling you this… At all." JJ said seriously. Madi heard a tiny tremble emerge from Penelope's lips. "Your mom… Left a letter explaining what was happening as best she could before she left. She couldn't tell us to our faces. It was too dangerous."

"It still is…" Penelope whispered.

There was a harsh moment of silence.

What did 'It still is' mean… Was the blackmailer still out there. Did she inadvertently put herself and her sister in danger? There were still so many questions that needed to be answered.

"Was the blackmailer ever caught?" She asked, wanting more information.

"JJ… We can't tell her anymore…"

Madi's expression turned from a sombre canvas to a deep scowl. "WHY? You've already told me up to this point… I deserve to know, don't I?" She stood up abruptly startling both Penelope and JJ who had hardly ever seen the girl angry. Angry wasn't the right word. This was frustration. All she wanted was answers. JJ could understand that.

It was at that point when Penelope's eyes widened, and her hands clasped over mouth. She held onto her breath as she glanced at the girl standing in front of her.

JJ heard Penelope gasp and whipped her head to look at the woman, only to turn her gaze to where Penelope was staring at. At first, she couldn't see it, but as she looked closer, she noticed the lightest mark on her lower neck.

It was a light mark that Bailey never had…

Madison- who had noticed the sudden mood change in both older women- furrowed her brow in profound confusion. Why were they staring at her like a volcano had just erupted?

"Penelope? JJ? Did I do something wrong?" Penelope shook her head and let a single tear roll down her cheek. She couldn't remove her eyes from this girl that she hadn't seen since she was a baby… It couldn't be her… There was just no way.

"You've done nothing wrong Madison…" JJ said so calmly. Madi gasped upon hearing her actual name and smoothed her hand on the birthmark on her lower neck.

Her cover was blown.

"Oh, my goodness…" Penelope spoke tearfully. "Madison? Is it really you?" She nodded slowly. Penelope stood up fragile and gave her a tight hug whilst JJ continued sitting on the couch just staring at the girl in awe, wondering how all of it had come to be.

She looked exactly like Bailey. The sharp cheekbones, dark eyes. The curvy Hotchner eyebrows and the light brunette hair. She had fooled everyone.

"Madi… Madison, oh my goodness… I have missed you soooo much!" Penelope cried into her shoulder.

For the first time since she had arrived in Virginia, Madison felt a huge sense of relief. They loved her… They truly did. Even though they didn't properly know her. This was Bailey's life. Her upbringing. The people who had always been there for her for her whole life. Bailey had so many people who had cared for her. All Madi had back in London was Clyde and her grandmother.

After another five minutes of hugging, Penelope hesitantly pulled herself away from Madi. It was as if she let go of her that she would vaporise into thin air.

JJ stood up and gave Madison another large hug. It was so surreal, she had so many questions to ask her. How was Emily? What life was like? How she met Bailey?

"It is so… So… So… Good for you to be here." Madison nodded and sat down on the couch in between the two women.

"I didn't think my charade would last long…" Her natural accent shone through- adding in that extra twang of British in. Penelope couldn't tear her eyes away from the girl, she was so beautiful, so elegant. Emily had raised her well.

"I just want to say… I love you so much…" Penelope cried, burying her face into the girl. Madison patted her back gently.

"Let me get this straight… You and Bailey met at the swim camp?" JJ asked to which the brunette nodded. "Wow… You both must have been so confused."

"It didn't take long to put the pieces together. It was Bailey's idea to switch places." Penelope's eyes widened even larger than they already were.

"You mean to say that Bailey is with your mom? With… Emily?" She nodded.

"My mom and I have lived in London for as long as I can remember…" There was a gasp.

"She lives in London?" JJ asked in disbelief.

"We never knew where she moved to… We had our suspicions that it was Europe, but we didn't know exactly where… London makes a lot of sense." Madison nodded.

"How do I tell dad all of this?" Madison asked with a large sigh in her voice. There was a silence.

Madison knew full well that he was already suspicious of her behaviour, but she didn't know how he would react when he found out. That was what was bothering her for the past few days, and it was only a matter of time before he figured it out like the great profiler he was.

"When you are ready, I guess…" JJ stated, breaking the silence. Penelope was still stunned. She had no words to describe how she was feeling. Happy, ecstatic, anxious, numb and unstable all at the same time.

"Will he be mad?" JJ immediately shook her head.

The one thing that had pained her through all the years was seeing Hotch so miserable all the time. Birthday parties, Christmases, even trips to the beach caused him great pain. He hid his emotions so well you would have thought he had the perfect life. It took a good friend and a skilled profiler to notice the littlest nuances in his behaviour.

"Absolutely not… He won't be mad at all… He'll…" JJ struggled for words. Madison looked up at her with her dark eyes; a mixture of fear and curiosity. "He will be so happy Madison… So happy…"

That was all Madison really needed to hear to ease her nerves. The rest of the afternoon was spent with lots of tears, lots of conversations, lots of tips to try and stay in character as 'Bailey' and most importantly lots of catching up.

They hadn't even got to watching a movie by the time that Madison needed to be back home. Her mind wandered to her sister. She wondered if she had been figured out yet…

A/N: I know this chapter is a little on the short side. Let me know what you think. Hopefully the next chapter won't take another two months!