A/N: I will be taking some creative liberties with this story because I have not been to jail. But I have done my research, and I will make this as realistic as possible with my mediocre writing skills. :) I am so excited about this story, and I promise it is only going to get better from here! Thanks to the people that have reviewed & alerted. It means SO much to me. I also want to say that my PMs are always open for anyone needing a listening ear or to bounce ideas around. Enjoy my beautiful friends. :) (ps the rating on this story will be changing to 'M'. Most of the story will be T, but parts will not.)
Chapter 2: Cover story
"You're originally from Star Valley, Arizona. This is your first time in jail, and they sent you to MCSO because it was the closest jail to your county." Hotch explained.
JJ faintly nodded her head while glancing down at the pad of paper in front of her accompanied by a pen, just in case she needed to write down any details she might otherwise forget.
She glanced up as Hotch continued.
"You were arrested for driving under the influence, and you are in jail awaiting a court date. You're not sure when the date is, and you're still waiting to hear back from your lawyer. It is a court-appointed lawyer, and regular inmates might ask you who and will know if you're lying. Your court-appointed lawyer is Micheal Shay; of course, he doesn't know this, but we checked, and he is not representing anyone in MCSO, so you should be safe."
JJ wrote down Michael's name and tried not to notice how her handwriting didn't appear as neat as usual.
"You can't make bail because you have no money and no family. Try to fly under the radar and don't share too many other details about yourself. Your job is to get other inmates to trust you, so they will share what they know about corruption. Also, JJ-" Hotch paused.
JJ brought her gaze up from the pad and tightly grasped her pen.
"Your main job is to stay safe."
"I know, I will. Don't worry," JJ reiterated but kept her eyes low; she didn't want Hotch to see right through her, right to her nerves.
"Okay, this is your distress signal," Hotch moved his hand to his shoulder. "Put your hand on your shoulder and roll it out while saying something like 'my shoulder is killing me'. If we see that signal, we will pull you immediately."
JJ nodded her head, "got it."
"There are cameras all over the jail, and one of us will be watching them at all times. But JJ, only the chief jailer will know you're in there. So from the moment you are arrested, you will be treated exactly as an inmate."
Reid and Emily stood next to JJ as they brought their stuff to the hotel. The hotel they figured would only act as a storage room to keep their stuff and nothing else because none of them were overly marvelous at taking breaks while on cases—especially cases threatening one of their own.
Reid hung up his phone and peered between the women.
"That was Hotch. Morgan is successfully in the jail."
They'd put Morgan in the jail earlier than JJ to not arouse suspicion. Any precaution they could take, they did. New inmates entered jail almost every day; JJ could easily slip between the cracks. With all this information, JJ knew she would enter the jail sometime in the next 24 to 36 hours.
"Where you from?" Emily asked with a jerk to her head and a voice she often used when pretending to imitate Morgan. JJ bit back a laugh.
"I'm from Star Valley."
"And they sent you here?"
"Closest jail to Gila County."
"Hmm, and you were arrested for illegal weapon possession?"
JJ broke character and chuckled. "Nah, man, they chargin' me with a DUI."
"Oooh, nice catch," Emily joked.
JJ laid down flat on the bed and placed her hands across her stomach. She took a deep breath and focused on the fan spinning above her while rehearsing her story over and over in her mind. The danger of having her cover story blown weighed heavily on her chest.
Emily crossed her feet into a sitting position at the foot of the bed. "You okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'm good."
"Are you sure you want to do this? It's not too late to back out-"
"I've already had to explain myself to Morgan so many times. Please, not you too. I'm good."
"I didn't mean-"
JJ cut her off. "I know, I'm sorry. I'm just a little on edge.
Emily bobbed her head and minorly readjusted. "Being nervous is normal. I'm always nervous before going undercover."
JJ caught sight of Emily's kind eyes and nearly wanted to cry at the relief those words brought, sort of surprising herself, but the gratitude for Emily's perception moved like a wave of emotion through her body.
"Really?"
"Of course. It's damn scary. And you don't have to lie to me about it."
Silence filled the air, but only for a moment. JJ moved on to her forearms to prop herself up to meet Emily's eyes.
"I'm scared as hell. Not about taking on the inmates; I can hold my own. I just want to be able to prove myself. This is my first real undercover operation, and I know the only reason Hotch is sending me in is because you can't."
Emily's mouth fell agape, "I'm sure that's not true-"
JJ rolled her eyes and fell back to the bed, her head falling concave in the hotel pillow.
"Okay, maybe, but that doesn't make you any less of an agent than me. JJ, I am in awe of you every day."
JJ couldn't help but scoff.
"Good hell, take a compliment, wouldya?" Emily joked before laying down flat next to JJ on the squeaky hotel bed.
The room fell quiet once again.
"You're gonna do great. Just please stay safe, okay?"
JJ nodded her head as a soft but tight smile decorated her lips.
The cuffs around her wrists pulled her arms behind her back just a tiny bit too tightly. The metal dug into her fair skin as two officers, who were less than considerate, pulled her into the jail through a side door.
A door apparently only meant for inmates.
The side door led to a loud area that gave the appearance of a waiting room at an office, an incredibly filthy office with people yelling everywhere. A built-in round counter swirled around the room, blocking in three intake officers, each commanding inmates around one way or the other.
To the right, JJ spotted a room sizing no more prominent than her office; it had glass windows and several inmates sitting on benches inside. Across from the round counter, more women sat and waited their turn. The officers pushed JJ on the bench right next to an inmate reeking of alcohol.
"Wait here until they call your name."
The officers sauntered away, and JJ readjusted on the bench to lean her head against the concrete wall. They called the alcoholic next to her to the desk first, and JJ tried to take in her surroundings, regardless of how all the stimuli at once emphatically overwhelmed her.
It wasn't too much longer until they called her up.
"Name?"
"Jennifer-"
"Speak up."
"Sorry, Jennifer Jareau," JJ shouted, catching a dirty look from the female officer in front of her at an outdated computer. Hotch allowed JJ to keep her full name. It was the cover story and details she really needed to worry about.
"What are the charges against you?" She didn't bother to glance from the computer screen to JJ.
"Uh, DUI."
"In what state?"
"Arizona," JJ answered but it felt more like a trick question.
"Any warrants out for your arrests in another state?"
"No."
"Will you be withdrawing from any substances during your time here?"
"Like drugs?"
She turned her head to the side. "Yes like drugs."
"No, I'm not," JJ replied with a bite to her words because this officer was starting to get on her nerves.
The officer scrutinized JJ. "Have you received your Miranda rights?"
JJ bobbed her head up and down.
"Okay, go sit down. Someone will come get you for your photo shoot in a minute."
That minute turned into 30, and the cuffs keeping her hands behind her back were never removed.
Finally, a white, gangly man came towards her.
"Jareau?"
JJ nodded with a drop to her eyebrows; her demeanor and attitude oozed annoyance. Regardless if he cared, and he didn't, she needed to appear and act like anyone else in here would.
He grabbed her by the bicep and pulled her into a side room behind the counter with all the computers. The room had the famous white paper with climbing heights on the back wall and a camera right across.
"You know the drill, or are you a newbie?"
"This is my uh- first time," JJ answered, trying to hide the hesitancy behind her voice.
"Oooh, fresh meat. They're gonna love you," He smirked and pointed to the paper. "Stand in front of the wall."
He moved right up to her, close enough she could smell his breath as he took off her cuffs. She rubbed her wrists and gave the man a grimy glare, but he only smiled. He finished taking her mugshots and then sent her into the glass box room with most of the same inmates she had seen before.
She already knew this was careless when she strode through the door, and the lock clicked behind her. She sat down and didn't say anything to anyone. But two of them were smoking joints, and JJ wanted to roll her eyes. The officers should have given a pat-down to check for drugs and removed all personal belongings.
She knew that, and she didn't work in jails.
She wasn't necessarily complaining, but she could understand why drugs, contraband, and weapons were snuck into the facility so easily.
Finally, a female officer, different from the one before, took her from the narrow room and pulled her to the other side of the "office".
"Turn around and place your hands against the wall."
JJ did as she was told while the officer completed a patdown search.
"Okay, turn back around. I need any personal belongings you have on you. Watches, earrings, shoes, anything."
JJ started with her shoes before taking off the rest of her meager personal belongings. Hotch told her this so she wouldn't bring anything she didn't want to be taken from her.
"Come over here."
The woman led her back to the round counter, where they took her fingerprints and sent her back to the same bench she had started on. Time continued to pass, and JJ sat anxiously, wondering if Morgan was inside waiting for her.
"Jareau."
She brought her head up and stood to go to the desk. The female officer didn't address her again until a male officer sporting sandy-brown hair strolled up to her. She hadn't smelled him, but something stunk.
"Officer Gary will be completing the rest of your intake."
JJ knew what this meant.
"He can't do that; it needs to be a female. This is a female-only correctional facility."
The woman scoffed.
"But the guards ain't all female. We almost off shift, so keep your mouth shut and move along." She waved her hand, and the man led her into a dim room.
JJ flinched as the door slammed shut behind them. She could still vaguely hear shouting from the few intakes left echoing outside the room. Still, somehow it began to soften by the deafening humiliation and despair the grimy room secreted.
She glanced at the shower in the corner, meager and only covered partially by a negligible curtain.
JJ met the man's gaze and instantly knew she wasn't the first. In this split second, she regretted ever making this decision.
He tried to hide the foul smirk sneaking across his face, but he couldn't stop leering over her body, up and down. She utterly despised the way his eyes traveled her body without consent, but he was already undressing her with just his eyes, and she couldn't imagine this next part getting any better for her. She moved her arms across her chest, a minor semblance of her disdain for the situation while something bitter and akin to bile rose in her throat.
Until his voice broke the barrier.
"Remove your clothes."
"This is bullshit," JJ growled back.
"I don't care what you think. Do it, or I'll have to get help, and we'll do it for you."
The muscles in JJ's throat restricted, and she kept her glare on his face while weighing her options.
"Come on, tick-tock."
JJ closed her eyes and took a deep breath before starting with the buttons on her shirt. It was a standard button-up, one she wore to work often, but now something about it felt dirty and used. She moved slowly, but not to antagonize him; honestly, she only moved as fast as her shaking fingers would allow. She hadn't met his eyes since undoing the first button, but when his voice rang out again, telling her to hurry up, she flinched.
Finally, her button-up shirt fell to the ground, and she refused to meet his nasty gawk, undoubtedly examining her black bra and the goosebumps littering her bare stomach and arms.
Next, she undid the zipper and button on her jeans and pulled them to her ankles.
She had been warned about this.
About the strip search.
But it always should have been a female.
She should never have been in this situation.
But in here, she didn't have any authority and no control.
She hesitated as she stood in her bra and panties, trying to decide what to take off first based on which was worse. Only to remember they were both worse. She reached behind her torso and unhooked her bra until it fell to the ground next to her jeans and shirt.
JJ couldn't stop staring at the floor. She didn't want him to see the tears threatening to fall. She was in here because she was supposed to be strong. She was supposed to be able to handle herself, and this was only day one.
"Come on, let's go." He barked, anxiously waiting for her to remove the last article of clothing.
She did and then brought her arms across her bare chest. She gave him the worst leer she could, ready to spit in his face or break his arm if he got any closer to her.
"You are a scumbag and a pervert. I hope you rot in hell." She uttered through gritted teeth.
He chuckled and never took his eyes off her body. He took a step towards her with his hand out, and JJ immediately took a step backward.
"Do not touch me, or I will break your arm." Her threat was real, more real than he knew, but he still just gleamed at the power this appalling situation brought.
"If you don't listen to what I say, I'll make sure you're in segregation for as long as you're here. Do you know what segregation is?"
She pursed her lips and kept quiet.
"It's you, in a cell, by yourself, for 23 hours, every single day."
He took another step towards her, and JJ took another back, almost parallel to the shower now.
"This is your last chance, sweet cheeks."
JJ rolled her eyes then turned away as he put his cold and clammy hand on her lower back. She closed her eyes, bit her lip, and resisted the urge to move away.
"Bend over and cough."
JJ moved slowly but did as she was told. As soon as his hand started to wander, she quickly jerked away.
"I'm not fucking kidding. Do not touch me."
"Whatever, shut up and get in the shower," He ordered. He grabbed her clothes on the ground and placed them in a clear plastic bag.
He wandered back over to watch her in the shower; JJ instantly turned and faced the showerhead, so she didn't have to see his prying eyes anymore.
After six or seven minutes, he reached around her and turned the lukewarm water off.
He pointed to the chair in the corner, holding a stack of inmate clothes.
"Put those on and wait while I get the nurse. They gotta take your blood to make sure you don't got no STDs. But by the looks of your pretty face, I'm willing to bet you're as clean as a whistle." He gave her a wink before closing the door behind him.
JJ grabbed the clothing and put it on as quickly as she could, and for the first time, she let the burning tears fall.