The team loaded into the SUVs. Rossi finally reached VA Maximum security prison, where Rawdon was being held.
He had the warden on the radio speaker so the whole team could be aware of the situation.
Rossi, J.J., and Reid were in one of the vehicles.
Morgan, Prentiss, and Natalie were in the other but the radio reached both vehicles.
"Affirmative agent Rossi, the riot just started here."
"Focus all your effort into finding Rawdon, we need him alive," Rossi ordered.
"Has anyone escaped?" Reid stretched his voice from the backseat.
"We don't know. We're still trying to secure the prison." The warden replied.
Prentiss, Morgan, and Natalie couldn't hear the question but they turned to each other registering what it must have been.
"Okay, Warden. We're five minutes out." Rossi told him.
He hung up the radio speakerphone connecting him to the warden. It now connected directly to the other SUV with Morgan, Prentiss, and Natalie.
They were about to take out a prison raid, Reid thought about Natalie as she thought about him. Both wanting to shield the other from what was about to happen but both knowing it was their job, this is what they signed up for, and they had to be okay with the other being in such intense danger.
"Okay." Prentiss's voice radiated through both S.U.V's, "The swatting, the breadcrumbs to Asher, this prison break is exactly what we profiled."
"It worked." J.J. began, "Rawdon has another group he's been working with on the inside. By the time we clear Hotch, he'll be gone." J.J. said, frustrated with a hint of frightened.
The inspector general walked back into the room.
"Who is Eric Rawdon?"
Hotch sighed, he turned to look down and shook his head in frustration.
"He's behind this." Hotch returned.
"Maybe he's your partner." The inspector general supplied.
Hotch looked at him, a little surprised by the lack of intelligence within that profile,
"If that were true, you would have evidence."
"I do. The storage locker in your name, the supplies-"
Hotch cut him off, "You're grasping. And I'll tell you why. You need me here as cover for missing a major terrorist incident."
The inspector general hung his shoulders, a little disappointed with the agent, "It's a prison break." He whispered.
"Not to Rawdon. His dream has always been to set off a bomb in a major metropolitan area. Not for any political or ideological reason, he just wants to see a city burn. And you're letting it happen." Hotch stayed cool, despite his frustration with the D.O.J. right now.
The inspector general looked down thoughtfully for a moment, he knew his expression changed, he didn't want the profiling agent to note that so he looked up with a stone-cold expression, "Now you're grasping."
Hotch didn't flinch, "Am I? Ask yourself one question, am I more helpful here? Mentally preparing the report of the subcommittee that's going to haul you in or out there? Catching Rawdon?"
The inspector general stared blankly at Hotch's questioning. He wasn't grasping. It was genuine and Hotch was right. His office had royally screwed up.
The SUVs arrived at the prison, metro officers and S.W.A.T. already on scene.
Each BAU member stepped out of the vehicle, ready to draw their guns at a moment's notice.
Natalie and Reid's eyes caught each other, they both nodded and pushed everything they felt down to do their job. Natalie thought about that, she had trouble pushing feelings down before but Reid seemed to help with that, which was so odd to her. She quickly brushed the thought to the side, she needed to focus…This isn't an average case. It's a case where loads of criminals are in a centralized area trying to break out at once. She gulped, ready for the worst.
Morgan and Rossi approached the lead officer, SWAT man, they couldn't really tell who he was first with the rest of the team falling behind.
He greeted him, offering his hand to shake, "SSA Rossi."
"Warden Nabb. Your call came minutes too late, agent."
The team all gave slight nods, they all understood why they weren't sure about who the man was with.
Reid spoke next, "Have you located Eric Rawdon?"
"Not yet. Rioters still control three blocks and the fires inside have spread us thin." He replied.
Prentiss looked worried, "Warden. It's not a riot. It's a break."
Warden Nabb didn't look too shaken by that. He nodded up, "They'll never get over the wall."
"They may have some other way out," Morgan answered, quickly. The Warden looked at him confused.
Natalie intervened next, "Every part of this plan has been meticulously crafted."
Warden Nabb nodded, he decided he needed to share why they weren't inside yet. "We got a distress call. Some of the prisoners got to the gun safe."
"First priority is to secure the control room." The SWAT lead answered.
Reid followed him, Natalie turned to Rossi and Morgan who nodded for the go-ahead.
Reid and Natalie both drew their guns behind SWAT, ready to breach the building to secure the control room.
"Which blocks do they control right now?" Natalie asked.
"D-block, E-block, and C-block." The SWAT lead answered.
"Do we have eyes inside?" Reid asked.
"Not yet."
Reid and Natalie turned to each other. Natalie hit the com button directing her to Garcia,
"We need eyes inside, Garcia. Can you get to it?"
Garcia began frantically typing on the keyboard, "I don't know. It's being rerouted every few seconds to IP addresses all over. Wait, these are the same IP addresses from the messages. I think I can get to them, it'll take a few minutes."
"Baby girl," Morgan's voice fell over the intercom. "We really don't have a few minutes."
"I know. I will have it." Garcia answered firmly, terrified for her friends.
J.J. ran behind SWAT to catch up to the two agents. Natalie nodded in relief at the backup.
Prentiss and Morgan breached another entrance to the prison. Rossi stayed outside to lead the operation. He hated it but in case of negotiations, they needed Rossi out there.
"I can't get eyes, yet. I'm sorry." Garcia told them in defeat.
"It's alright," Morgan replied.
"Breach." Rossi gave the order. The Agents and SWAT filed in. J.J., Natalie, Reid, and some of SWAT approached an empty cell block. They were heading to the control room but this meant the rioters were in this block, somehow blocking access to the control center.
The agents held guns up in front of them, never shouting clear like usual. They were stealthily silent as they made their way through this cell block.
Morgan and Prentiss approached the entrance from the yard.
Each nodding to the other when the path was clear. They didn't have SWAT with them yet. SWAT would breach momentarily once Prentiss and Morgan had secured themselves inside.
It only took a few minutes as Morgan and Prentiss began to hear uniformed footsteps, SWAT Prentiss mouthed to Morgan who was on the defense.
He nodded as they kept moving, the control room was harder to get to this way but it may work since the prisoners hadn't taken over this wing yet.
"Got one!" SWAT yelled to the three agents.
Natalie approached this bald-headed man, she didn't recognize him. He held his hands up without his facial expression of a frown shifting.
She pointed her gun directly at him.
"Where are the others? How are they getting out?" Natalie whisper-yelled which sent chills down the other two agents' spines.
The prisoner held a finger up to his lips, "Sssshhh." He whispered which caused J.J., Reid, and SWAT to look around, Natalie didn't take her eyes off the prisoner.
J.J. saw someone moving outside the hall, another prisoner. "Freeze!" She yelled.
He didn't do as he was asked, he ran. Natalie looked at the prisoner with a bit of relief before lifting her gun to the prisoner running. SWAT and the agents continued in stealth silence even after the yells.
SWAT entered C-block first. The prisoner that had been running from them, or at least they thought stepped out of a cell first, he had an AR-15 in his hand, SWAT shot immediately upon sight and the man went down.
The team continued to half walk/half running down C-block checking each cell as they approached. The SWAT man kicked the gun away from the prisoner while J.J. bent down to check his pulse. Despite what they were doing, her warm nature kicked in, wanting him to be alive. As she did this, she heard a rumbling from inside a cell. "Sssshhh!" She told everyone that was moving which caused them to stop.
"You got a flashlight?" She asked.
SWAT handed her one as she began to check underneath the bed of one of the cells.
She saw the grate and sighed. "Captain, we got a tunnel."
Natalie immediately grabbed her mic to tell their lead outside, "Rossi. Tunnel on C-block along the sewer line on the east wall."
"Copy. We're going there now." Rossi said over the intercom.