"If you have not been a villain at a certain point in time, you will never be a hero. And the day you are a hero, you may become a villain the next day."
Carlos Ghosn
"Security cleared the building," Hotch rushed back into the room, putting his phone back in his jacket. "We have the warrant for Stephen and Blake. Morgan and Reid are waiting on SWAT and Garcia's leaving with Bureau security." He turned to Erin. "If you don't want to be here, now's your chance."
"I can't leave you all here," for now, they were Bureau agents without proper protection, she needed to stay to make sure that they got their protective gear from SWAT. "Not like this." Not until she was completely sure they had the tools to safely do their jobs.
"Yes, you can." Dave tried again, glaring at her like she'd grown a third eyeball in the middle of her forehead. "Did you hit your head while you were trapped in your office?" There was no way she was hanging around if he could stop her. No way, no how.
"David-" She tried to argue, it was her job to make sure her agents were safe. Not that there was too much she could do, but she could at least wait for SWAT to show up.
"Forget your job for five seconds and tell what the difference is, whether you're here or not?" He spat, "Now isn't the time for blind-loyalty to the Bureau, Erin. Walk out of here while you still can. We can get you out of here through the back steps, but we need to hurry." Just then, Dave's phone rang. He pressed the button and turned on the speaker. "Yeah, Penelope?"
"So, just to fill everyone in," she climbed into the Bureau car and pulled on her seatbelt. "Blake and Curtis helped run the Bureau Summer camp when Stephen was in middle-school up until he started High school. When Gideon and his wife divorced, Jason spent time working cases in Kansas, after Blake and Curtis were transferred after the Amerithrax case. Stephen spent summers with Jason there-"
"Presumably, learning from Curtis?" Erin asked, with a pit of dread in her stomach, Stephen… Jason's son. No matter what she thought of Gideon, the thought of him possibly losing his only child… she didn't want to live with that.
"Yes, Ma'am and to thicken the plot worse than expired clam chowder, 5 months ago, Stephen took a temporary position as a nighttime janitor. The company he works for has a contract with the FBI's facilities management."
"Okay, so we know he poisoned the BAU building, but what about the hotel in New York?" Dave clenched the phone tighter. "Is there anything tying him to that?"
Penelope kept her fingers on her keyboard from the backseat of the car, scrolling through information while she spoke. "His travel records show he was in New York at the same time we were and the same cleaning company has a contract with the hotel we were staying in-"
"Is he on the security footage?" Erin cut in, eagerly.
Penelope kept quiet while searching her databases, "yes, Ma'am." She pulled up the new security footage. "He was there that night." Penelope's blood suddenly went cold. "He kept the front desk staff distracted while Curtis walked you outside."
"What about Blake?" Erin pushed, "do you have footage of the room? I know she was there that night."
"There aren't cameras inside the individual rooms, but I have her in the hallway, with Curtis." Penelope paused long enough to watch the tape. She watched Strauss answer the door, Curtis and Blake shove their way inside. The door closed and then… "After Blake and Curtis go in, Stephen comes in a minute later."
"Oh God," Erin's hand went to her mouth as her stomach flip-flopped.
"I checked Blake's finances too and she's been funding all of Stephen's travel endeavors, including the packaging with the ultrasound picture."
"She's making all of this possible." Dave's other hand curled into a fist. "She's financing the little prick. Even if Blake never got her hands dirty, she was making all of this possible."
"Is Stephen contracted with the doctor's offices too?" Erin cut in, it was the only way anyone could have gotten that picture.
"Three for three," Penelope answered. "Now go get this worm and put him where he belongs."
"Thank you, Garcia." Erin said faintly, her head swam. The son of a bitch was everywhere.
Dave hung up the phone. "You need to get out of here."
Hotch pulled out his phone and checked the alerts. "SWAT isn't here yet and we're waiting on Metro to block off the roads."
"Erin?" Dave pressed, "I'm serious. Get out of here. There's nothing you can do here."
She swallowed tightly, chewing on her lip. He was right, she was collateral damage, still she hated to leave him behind. "Alright, Richard is parked outside, I'll leave with him."
"Please do." Dave grabbed her hand, squeezing tightly. "We're two floors above the parking lot. Come on."
Stephen shifted in his seat, he was hungry and bored. Waiting wasn't his strong suit and watching his dad pace in front of the TV was getting on his nerves. "Don't we have something better to do?"
"No right now," Gideon replied. "When everyone is discharged, we can leave."
"Well," Stephen crossed his arms. "It would be good of them to tell you something."
"These things take time," Gideon said pleasantly, sitting down in the hard chair beside him. "I- uh- I know this wasn't what you were expecting."
"No," Stephen ground out. "It's really not. We're supposed to be in Canada, bitching about Border Patrol by now."
"Well," Jason sat his empty cup on the floor beside him. "If it makes a difference…" he paused, watching the empty doorway through the corner of his eye. The elevator dinged in the distance down the hallway. "Stephen," he turned to face his son. "I've really enjoyed this time we've spent together."
Dave glanced around the shadowy hospital parking garage, where Richard waited for them. His SUV idled in a spot just outside the emergency zone. Sirens should have been piercing in the distance, but that would have blown their cover. For once, the silence coming from police cars might be a good thing.
"How's it going?" Richard asked, lowering the driver's side window.
"We think the unsub is here, if we're lucky this will all be over by sundown." Dave answered, opening the passenger door. He helped Erin into the car but paused before closing the door.
"Don't look so nervous, Babe."
"I'm not," she crossed her arms over her chest, betraying her tone. "This isn't your first take-down." Why did it feel like she was leaving him behind, never to see him again?
"I'll be home by bedtime," he promised.
"I'll wait up," she said, her voice tense. She nodded her head as she drank in his expression. This would not be the last time his beautiful brown eyes bore into hers; she wouldn't allow it.
He tenderly brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Everything's going to be okay…" He believed it; he really did. Still, there were things she needed to know. "Sweetheart," he pulled back slightly as his voice caught in his throat, they had no vests, very little ammo, without backup and a hospital of collateral damage.
"Don't say it," she demanded, holding up her shaking hand before curling her hand around his forearm, holding his palm against her cheek. "Don't talk to me about how much you love me, David." She took a shaky breath, blinking back the hot tears that suddenly filled her eyes. She squeezed her eyes closed, forcing them back. "I know that you love me and our family, I know that we mean the world to you-" She paused, letting out another shuddering breath. "Just tell me you're coming home for dinner."
The side of his mouth pulled upwards, "you and our family do mean the world to me, but all I was going to tell you is that there's chicken defrosting in the refrigerator and you know I like my pasta al dente."
"Sure," she scoffed, flashing a smile. Reaching up, she straightened the collar of his sport coat and pecked his lips. If she was sending him off to meet God, he needed to look sharp. "I'll try not to overcook it." Then, with a note of finality, she pulled away, closed the door and the SUV drove off.
"Well," Stephen cleared his throat awkwardly. Resting his elbow on the arm of the plastic, hospital-issued chair. "I've had a good time too, Dad." Stephen stood up, "Do you think I could…" he paused slightly, this was more awkward than he thought it would be. "Dad, do you think I could have a hug?"
Jason jumped to his feet; a wide smile spread across his face. "Of course, you can, Son."
And that's all it took for Stephen to lift the keys to the car from Jason's pocket.
Erin looked out the windshield of the SUV as Richard, the head of her security detail, navigated the car onto the highway. She watched him through her peripheral vision, the tense set of his shoulders and his white-knuckled grip on the wheel…. "Are you alright?"
"Fine," he muttered, without looking in her direction as he drove, taking them further from the hospital and away from her team. She would have given anything to know what the Hell was going on there. Instead, she kept an eye on the road signs, leading her away from the hospital, in the opposite direction of any familiar territory.
"Where are we going?" She asked, carefully, keeping a neutral tone.
"Somewhere safe," his monotone voice barely rose beyond a whisper, without breaking away from the windshield. "You're not going to believe me, but I'm on your side."
Erin swallowed tightly, swiping her sweaty hands against her pants. Something wasn't right. "Richard, where are we going?"
"Hotch!" Gideon jogged down the hallway, a sheen of sweat broke across his forehead as he grabbed Aaron by the elbow. He checked his pockets again, but the keys were still missing.
"Stephen's-he's-he's- gone." Jason insisted, tripping over his words with urgency and anxiety. "He stole the car keys and he's gone. I know you're looking for him. I tried to keep him here, but he's gone."
"How long?" Just then, the elevator dinged, the doors opened, and Dave stepped out, right in front of Gideon and Hotch.
"Stephen's missing," Hotch said, filling him in.
"He left about 30 minutes ago," Jason supplied, "he's on the move."
"Where's he going?" Dave grabbed him by the shoulders, shoving him hard into the concrete wall.
"I'm not sure-"
"Where's he going?" Dave hissed, his hot breath beat against Jason's face, showering him with spit as he spoke.
"Dammit, Dave! I said I don't know!"
"Tell me where he's going!" Dave demanded, bracing his forearm across Jason's throat, holding him against the wall. "Where the fuck would he go, Jason? I need an address."
"I can-" Jason wheezed as Dave increased the pressure. "My father's got a building-haven't been there in years. I'll show you."
"Richard," Erin looked around the car, its leather interior was pristine, it still had the rubbery, new-car smell lingering in the air. "Where are we going?" She shifted in her seat and covertly pulled out her phone, dialed a number and slid it back in her pocket.
"Not home," he bit out, pulling up to a stoplight. Then jerked the car to the right, turning onto a dirt road. "Where's your phone?"
"Why?" She stiffened against the leather seat, her blood running ice cold as the car came to a stop in the middle of a dirt road. "Richard?" This wasn't happening, he was paid to protect her. "Why are you doing this?"
He shook his head, just a miniscule amount, someone further away wouldn't have noticed it. "I'm on your side. Get out of the car." He opened his door and stepped out, pulling a set of handcuffs from the belt loop behind him.
Her eyes went wide, a fresh pocket of fear lodged in her throat. "Richard?" Something didn't sit right. He had every opportunity in the world to be violent or threatening, but he wasn't… "why?"
He yanked the door open and snapped the cuffs on her wrists, dragging her out of the car. "Shut up!"
"Let go of me!" She hissed, jerking away from him, the metal cuffs cut into her wrists. "Don't touch me! Why the hell did you bring me here?"
"Shut up!" He growled, shoving her forward, and she landed hard on her knees, catching herself on her hands.
She flinched at the sudden impact on her belly. "Richard, stop!" She screamed when his hand slid down her back pocket, he grabbed her phone and threw it over his shoulder, without looking at the screen.
"Jesus, I said shut up!" He argued, dragging her to her feet by the chain connecting the handcuffs. Then shoved her forward between the shoulders. "Get moving!"
He led her up the dirt road, surrounded by trees and heat-brittle shrubbery. Time seemed to stand still until they came to a warehouse in the middle of nowhere. Erin looked for some way to escape; they were surrounded by woods at least 5 miles from the main road. Her stomach dropped to her dust-covered shoes, there was nowhere to go.
"I thought you'd never get here," Alex snarled, shoving Erin into a chair. She recognized the cold metal pressed against her hair. The sound of tape ripping echoed through the building as Richard taped her legs against the chair. A single lightbulb dangled from the ceiling, providing the only source of light in the room.
"What's your plan? Are you going to shoot me right away or are we going to talk this out first? I guess this is the part of the story where your 'master plan' unravels." Erin goaded, with sarcasm dripping from her tongue.
"If I wanted you dead, you would be dead already," Alex spat. Pressing the cold muzzle harder against Erin's head. "Aren't you going to ask me why I'm doing this?"
"No." She scoffed, ignoring the taste of iron on her tongue. "I don't care. You just said you're not going to kill me."
"I never said I wouldn't hurt you." She pulled a hunting knife from the waistband of her jeans; the low light illuminated her sick expression. Her eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. She would enjoy this.
"Why?" Erin held her head high, Blake was counting on her fear. "What do you want from me?"
Alex paused, slashing the blade through the top of Erin's thigh, tearing the fabric of her slacks.
Erin jerked back, as the blade pressed into her skin. "What the hell is this for?"
"I want an apology. You told me you regretted letting me take the fall for the Amerithrax case-"
"And I meant it," Erin said, her voice raised in pain as the blade made another shallow slice on her leg, inching higher and deeper with every cut.
Alex's eyes were dark and empty, as if life had never lived there and never would. "You tanked my career, my marriage and my baby died. All because you wanted the desk job."
"I earned it," Erin spat. "You're mad because I didn't cover for you. I'm sorry you had a miscarriage, but I didn't fuck it up, Alex. You incriminated the wrong man."
"Turn up here!" Gideon demanded, jabbing a finger at the windshield as Dave pulled the Bureau's SUV onto the dirt road. "The road's too narrow for the car. It's about half a mile that way-" Gideon said, grabbing the door handle.
"You can't go in there-" Dave said quickly, flashing Jason a concerned look. "You're a civilian now."
"I'm a bored old man who happened to be in the neighborhood," Jason threw back and got out of the car.
"A bored old man in a vest?" Dave asked pointedly, he was wasting time arguing. Jason wanted to see for himself that his kid made it out alive and Dave couldn't blame him.
"Come on," Jason started up the hill. "I'll show you where to go and then I'll go back to the car."
"Thanks," Hotch jogged out of the back seat of the SUV and fell in stride beside Gideon.
"Wait!" Dave ran past them as something in the dirt caught his eye. He reached forward and grabbed it. "It's Erin's phone," he mumbled as the screen lit up, he entered the passcode and scrolled through the home screen, her last call was to him, it had gone straight to voicemail.
They walked in silence, each step clouded the air with dirt and dust. Dave set his sights on the warehouse, picturing exactly what he would do when he finally found Stephen…
30 minutes later Jason paused, at the clearing, the delipidated warehouse stood 20 feet in front of them.
"Dave?" Jason said, almost timidly. He had to try to protect Stephen, even if his efforts were in vain.
"What?" He looked Jason in the eye, a heavy pause stretched between them, they both knew what was coming.
"From one dad to another…" Jason let the sentence trail off.
"Jason," Dave held his hand up, "that's a low blow and you know it."
"Dave, please," Jason would have hit his knees in front of Dave if it would help. "He's my son. don't shoot him. Just let him walk out of here."
Dave stayed silent, making his way to the building. Stephen's fate rested entirely on Erin's condition when they found her. He made no promises in regard to Stephen's fate. "I'll keep you in mind."