Chapter 18: Morgan and Prentiss = Two More Soulmates
March 16, 2016: 10:15 pm
Morgan had been abducted by a team of four professional men hired to torture and kill him. They drove him out to a cabin in the middle of nowhere. They were setting up a torture rack to restrain him in. Morgan had a hood over his head. He was recalling how his abduction happened.
One hour earlier; March 16, 2016: Morgan's Abduction
Around 9 pm, Morgan was coming out of a store with some last minute things for a dinner date with Prentiss when she gave him a call on his cell phone.
"Hey, Emily," answered Morgan. "I was just leaving the store. Was there something else you wanted me to get in there?"
"Derek," said Prentiss. "I might have to cancel our dinner date. I made a mistake on the meal I was cooking for you."
"What do you mean?" asked Morgan.
"I...lost the recipe for the Italian meal that Dave gave me, so I winged it," admitted Prentiss. "It smells delicious, but when I tasted it, it tasted awful!"
"Did you call Rossi for another recipe copy?" asked Morgan.
"I just finished talking to him," said Prentiss. "He reminded me that I don't have Reid's eidetic memory. So, I told him what I put in the Bolognese de Rossi. He stopped me when I said I put in half a cup of Orto red wine. He said that it was cooking wine and that's why it tastes awful. He said that I have to start cooking the whole recipe all over again! And then, he hung up on me. I'm sorry, Derek."
"Well," said Morgan. "Don't you remember what Rossi told us the time he gave us the spaghetti cooking lesson in 2011?"
"No," answered Prentiss. "Remind me."
"Sure you do," smiled Morgan. "You don't need to be Reid to remember this one!"
"Morgan!" said Prentiss. "Just tell me. What did he say?"
Morgan laughed, "All right, all right! Rossi said, 'If you don't find yourself making it properly, please...'"
"'...order a pizza!'" laughed both Prentiss and Morgan.
"Thanks, baby," smiled Prentiss. "I needed that laugh!"
"I'll stop by the pizza place and bring us back a supreme special, Prentiss," smiled Morgan.
"Hmmm," smiled Prentiss. "When you bring it back, maybe I will give you a supreme special!"
"Yeah?" smiled Morgan. "Tell me more!"
"Well," smiled Prentiss. "When you come back, I might only be wearing one of your shirts!"
"Woman, you are driving me crazy," smiled Morgan.
Prentiss laughed. A man walking by Morgan bumped into him hard.
"Hey!" said the man. "Watch where you are going!"
"What?" said Morgan.
"You heard me!" said the man. "Watch where you're going!"
"You got a problem?" asked Morgan.
"Derek, are you okay?" asked Prentiss. "Who are you talking to?"
"Yeah, it's nobody," said Morgan. "Just some hothead!"
"It's taking too long," said a second man. "Are you sure you got him?"
Morgan suddenly felt dizzy and he dropped the shopping bags he was holding. Two other men came towards him.
"Yeah," said the first man. "See?"
The first man pulled a syringe needle off of Morgan's shoulder.
"He must be strong!" said the second man.
"Derek, what's happening?" asked Prentiss.
"Emily," groaned Morgan. "I'm in trouble! Call Hotch! Call Hotch!..."
The four men grabbed Morgan making him drop his cell phone.
"Derek?" said Prentiss's voice on the phone. "Are you there? Morgan, answer me!"
Two of the men held Morgan's arms and the third man punched Morgan in the gut. Morgan fell down to the ground and the three men started kicking him. The fourth man smashed Morgan's cell phone with his boot heel.
Present Day; March 16, 2016: 10:30 pm
The four abductors restrained Morgan onto the torturing rack and they tore most of his shirt off from his chest and they removed the hood from his head. They hooked a heart monitor onto Morgan's chest and they noticed that Morgan was already awake. One man started hitting Morgan's gut with his torture stick. Morgan tried mentally putting himself into the future. He found himself married to Emily Prentiss and being welcomed by twin children when he got home one night. Prentiss was mad that he was late and Morgan sweet talked her into forgiving him. But, as Morgan kissed her, he saw an older man sitting behind Prentiss smiling at him.
In the cabin, the torturer hit Morgan in the gut again. Morgan mentally put himself into the future again. When he got home at night, Prentiss was mad again because he was late. Hotch, JJ, Reid and Rossi appeared and helped Prentiss criticize him for being late. Morgan said he was trying to get home to them. The old man appeared again telling Morgan he was going in the wrong direction. Morgan needed to go to the past, not the future. The old man took Morgan out to a beautiful open field in the daylight. Morgan asked the old man who he was and he said he was Hank Morgan, Derek's father.
In the cabin, Morgan's mental training paid off. The torture beating wasn't hurting Morgan nearly as badly as the torturer hoped it would. So, he took out some white phosphorus and drew a line of it down the center of Morgan's chest. Then, he heated his torture stick on a lit fireplace.
"This isn't the first time I've done this," said the torturer. "But this will be the most that I've enjoyed it!"
In the beautiful open field, Morgan thought that seeing Hank was a dream. Hank said maybe he was there because if Morgan died, things would be less scary if Hank was there to welcome him to the afterlife. Or, maybe Hank was there to help Morgan live through this. Hank asked Morgan to do a cognitive interview on himself. Morgan remembered the day that he saw Younger Hank get shot dead by a purse snatcher in broad daylight when Morgan was 10 in 1985. Morgan blamed himself because he thought that Hank would be protected if he stopped the squad car and helped the lady by arresting the robber. Morgan learned that day that God doesn't stop bullets or bad guys, so he chose to stop the bad guys himself. Suddenly, Morgan's chest felt hot.
"Fire in the hole!" yelled the torturer.
In the cabin, the torturer used the heated torture stick to ignite the white phosphorus on Morgan's chest. In the open field, Morgan dropped down to his knees groaning in pain.
"It's burning, Pop!" cried Morgan. "It's burning!"
"Son," said Hank. "Listen to me. The men who are doing this are trying to break you. Don't let them. They will make a mistake. Just wait for it."
"Pop," groaned Morgan. "Will you stay with me through this?!"
"Yes," answered Hank. "I promise."
The henchman who was looking at Morgan's heart monitor said, "His heartbeat is dropping back to normal."
"That's impossible!" said the torturer. "Cut him loose!"
"Why?" said a henchman.
"I want him naked!" said the torturer.
The three henchmen unlocked the restraints and Morgan dropped down to his knees drooping his head down with his eyes closed. They removed the rest of his shirt.
"Wait for it," said Hank. "Wait for it..."
One henchman grabbed Morgan's head and rose it up to his view.
"Now," said Hank.
Morgan opened his eyes and he grabbed the henchman's gun. He stood up holding that henchman as a human shield and he shot the torturer in his torso. The torturer fell to the floor. The other two henchmen shot at Morgan as he backed himself up with the human shield to the bathroom. Morgan dropped the dead henchman while firing two shots back and he quickly closed the bathroom door. The other two henchmen opened fire on the entire bathroom door. They heard nothing when they stopped firing. They opened the shot up bathroom door only to see a shot up toilet. Morgan dropped down from above the doorway and he emptied the last of his gun's bullets into the two of them. They both dropped dead. Morgan staggered out of the bathroom seeing that all four men were down. Morgan collapsed on the floor from the pain of the burning white phosphorus.
At Quantico, Rossi was telling Hotch and Reid what Prentiss said in her cognitive interview. Garcia and JJ were online checking the camera feed from the grocery store parking lot where Morgan was last seen. Garcia told the team that she found a satellite phone pinging from the area where Morgan was taken, but it was turned off now. Garcia set up her laptop to ping that satellite phone the next time it was turned on. Prentiss was alone in the ladies room tearfully looking at herself in the mirror while recalling memories of herself and Morgan.
October 10, 2007: Prentiss's Return and Gideon's Unexpected Departure
Prentiss was returning to Quantico after taking a week off from getting hit in the head with a wooden plank by a serial lady killer named Joe Smith. She entered the elevator from the parking garage to ride up to the sixth floor. Before the doors closed, Morgan jumped into the elevator with her.
"Morgan!" said Prentiss. "You startled me!"
"Prentiss," said Morgan. "Sorry about that. How are you feeling?"
"Better," answered Prentiss. "I don't think I have any permanent memory loss from what happened. What's been happening here?"
"There's still no sign of Gideon," said Morgan. "But, Hotch has returned to the BAU despite Strauss's reluctance to bringing him back."
"I'm pretty sure she didn't want him back," said Prentiss. "After Frank and Jane jumped in front of that train, Strauss tried to make me her mole to help her fire Hotch from the BAU!"
"...And that's why you really quit," said Morgan. "You didn't want to be her double-agent."
"No, I didn't," answered Prentiss. "I hate politics. But, Hotch figured it out. He came to my apartment and he talked me into helping you guys solve the Milwaukee case. And now, both Hotch and Strauss know where I stand as an FBI agent."
"Well, I, for one am happy that you're back, Emily," said Morgan. "In fact, after this next case, I could show you how happy I am if you let me take you out on a date."
"Derek," said Prentiss. "I like you and you're a good guy. But, you had better look up and see pigs flying before I'd ever go out with you!"
"Deal," laughed Morgan.
Prentiss laughed while secretly feeling flattered. The elevator doors opened on the sixth floor and Morgan and Prentiss entered the bullpen and they saw JJ and Garcia sadly looking at Reid reading a letter at his desk.
"Guys," said Morgan. "What's wrong?"
"Gideon's quit the BAU," said Garcia.
"What?" said Prentiss.
"You must be joking," said Morgan.
"It's no joke," said Reid with his voice breaking. "He left his badge and his gun in his cabin with this letter addressed to me."
Reid handed Prentiss the letter.
"'Spencer, I knew that it would be you to come to the cabin to check up on me...'" read Prentiss. "'...For the belief I had back in college. The belief I had when I first met Sarah and it all seemed so right. The belief in happy endings.'"
Morgan and Prentiss looked at each other. Garcia and Reid had tears in their eyes. Morgan put his arm around Garcia. JJ put her hand on Reid's shoulder.
"Kid," said Morgan.
"Reid, I'm sorry," said Prentiss.
Reid got up and he ran out of the bullpen crying.
"Reid," said Morgan.
"Let him go," said JJ. "When he's ready to talk about it, he'll let one of us know."
Garcia sadly walked into Gideon's office. JJ walked to her office to get the file for the next case. Prentiss put the letter back on Reid's desk. She put her hand on Morgan's shoulder and she sat down at her desk. Morgan and Prentiss saw Chief Strauss walking into Hotch's office. All five of them emotionally dealt with Gideon's unexpected goodbye before starting their next case.
Present Day; March 16, 2016: 11 pm
Reid, JJ and Garcia went to Morgan's house and checked his laptop computer for any signs of surveillance spyware hacking. Garcia found nothing on the laptop, but she noticed that Morgan's DVR recorder had Wi-Fi on it so she checked it out. Somebody had been using spyware on the DVR recorder to monitor Morgan's every move whenever he was at home. Garcia found out that there was a CIA spy frame in Morgan's DVR. JJ pulled out her cell phone and called a friend at the CIA asking him for a favor.
In the cabin, Morgan got up and he pulled a hoodie sweater off of one of the dead henchmen and he put it on to cover up from the cold evening air. Morgan found a tattoo on the left arm of one of the henchmen saying, "Who Dares Wins." Morgan found a cell phone in the hoodie pocket and he tried to use it to call the BAU, but there was no cell service. Morgan noticed that the torturer was still alive and he picked up a knife and pointed it at the torturer for information.
The torturer kept repeating, "Solomon, Comma, Edgar."
So, Morgan applied some pressure pain on his bullet wound. Solomon said that someone hired them to bring Morgan to this isolated place to torture and kill him. Morgan asked him where was his backup and Solomon laughed saying there was no backup, only cleanup. Then he told Morgan to go take a look outside and Morgan did. The cabin was out in the middle of nowhere. There were no other cabins, no vehicles and no other people around for miles to help Morgan. Then Morgan looked around the cabin and found a bottle of copper sulfate. He slowly poured it on his chest to counteract the burning white phosphorus on his chest. Morgan screamed from the pain it caused.
In the beautiful open field, Morgan told Hank that a couple of years ago Reid bored him to death endlessly talking about copper sulfate being the solution to burning white phosphorus for the troops in Iraq. Hank said Morgan should be thankful that he listened to Reid instead of falling asleep. They stopped their walk together in front of a lake. Hank had Morgan remember his difficult time with Carl Buford in his molestation cabin when Morgan was 15 in 1990. Morgan thought Hank was ashamed of his son for doing nothing about Buford for 16 years. However, Hank was proud of Morgan for originally creating that beautiful open field to mentally survive Buford's abuse. And, for Morgan taking his pain from Buford's abuse to becoming a Chicago policeman in the late 90s. And, for Morgan becoming an FBI agent who helped a Chicago detective who was completely against Morgan arrest Buford for murdering a boy in 2006. And, for Morgan taking such good care of his mom and sisters all these years. Hank couldn't be more proud of how his son turned out.
But, Morgan still had no memory about why he was abducted. Morgan wished that he could call Garcia to help him. An angelic version of Garcia suddenly appeared and joined them in the open field saying that her information superhighway was limited there to anything that Morgan knew. Morgan remembered that the "Who Dares Wins" tattoo was the motto of the British Special Air Services.
In the cabin, Morgan overheard Solomon asking somebody to extract him. Morgan noticed that Solomon had a satellite phone and he tried to take it. But, Solomon took a chip out of the phone and he quickly swallowed it. Without the chip, the phone didn't work, so Morgan tried making Solomon cough it back up. Solomon bit Morgan's hand so Morgan choked him to death. Morgan cut him open with the knife to retrieve the chip. Morgan put the chip back in the phone and it said on the screen "Enter Password." Morgan dropped down on the floor feeling frustrated because he still couldn't call Hotch to come and help him.
In Quantico, JJ learned from her CIA contact that Morgan's abductors were freelance contractors who do dirty work for the highest bidder. She showed the BAU team a photo of a six-man team who were very good at making people disappear. Garcia asked a CIA hacker to help her crack the encryption signatures from Morgan's DVR recorder. Hotch had Garcia do a close up on a tattoo on one man's forearm that said, "Who Dares Wins." Rossi recognized it immediately as the motto of the British Special Air Services. In the ladies room, Prentiss recalled the moment she realized that she was always in love with Morgan.
September 24, 2012: Prentiss Moved To London
Around 4 pm, Garcia and Morgan finished helping Prentiss move into her new penthouse flat.
"This place is lovely, Em," said Garcia with a British accent.
Prentiss laughed. Morgan walked back inside the flat hanging up his cell phone.
"That was Reid," said Morgan. "He said that JJ's returned to the BAU."
"How is she?" asked Prentiss.
"She's still depressed about Will," answered Morgan. "But, she is getting her head back into the game. They all took a case in Seattle with our new team member, Dr. Alex Blake."
"Great!" groaned Garcia. "A newbie!"
"Hey," said Prentiss. "I was a newbie myself, once! Replacing an Agent Elle Greenaway, if I'm not mistaken? But, you fell in love with me, Pen. Will you give your new teammate a chance?"
"Okay," said Garcia. "I'll try. But she's not replacing you in my heart!"
"No," said Prentiss. "But, with your gigantic heart, she will find a place in it if you just give her a chance."
Garcia smiled at Prentiss for the compliment.
"Well, it looks like you're all settled in, Prentiss," said Morgan. "You'll start your new life here tomorrow."
Garcia picked up her bag full of London memorabilia.
"I've got all of my souvenirs ready to take home with me," said Garcia.
"Pen," laughed Prentiss. "Any more souvenirs and you might just bring all of London home with you!"
"Baby Girl," smiled Morgan. "Our plane might not be able to take off now from too much weight!"
Prentiss laughed. Garcia pulled her cell phone out.
"One more selfie for the road," smiled Garcia. "All of us together!"
Prentiss and Garcia got Morgan to stand in between them as Garcia snapped her photo. The three of them stopped smiling and looked at each other.
"Well," said Prentiss. "I guess this is it, guys."
"Yeah," said Garcia. "I promised myself that I wouldn't cry, but I can't help it!"
"Pen," said Prentiss. "I want you to promise me something."
"Anything, Em," said Garcia. "Anything!"
"Please help take care of JJ and Henry for me," said Prentiss. "Without Will in their lives anymore, they're going to need some strong emotional support. Support I know that you can give them."
"I promise, Em," tearfully said Garcia. "But, how am I going to move on without you? You're going to be here now and not in DC!"
"Garcia," said Morgan. "Over a year ago, we had to move on without Emily because we both thought that she was dead. If we could do that then, we can do it now, too. But, this time, we both know that she's alive."
"Yeah," said Garcia. "Yeah, she is. Do me a favor and please, please stay alive! Promise me?"
"I promise," said Prentiss. "Come here."
Prentiss and Garcia hugged each other tightly. Prentiss closed her eyes.
"I just want you to know that I love you, Pen," whispered Prentiss. "With all of my heart!"
"I love you, too, Em!" cried Garcia. "More than you'll ever know! And, I always will!"
Prentiss wiped a tear from Garcia's face with her finger. Garcia walked out of the flat heading towards the elevator.
"Emily..." said Morgan.
"Derek, don't!" said Prentiss. "Please don't try to talk me into changing my mind. If Pen can't talk me out of this, nobody can!"
"I was just gonna say I miss you already, Emily," said Morgan.
Prentiss's heart soared from Morgan's words. Prentiss and Morgan hugged each other tightly while she closed her eyes again.
"If you ever change your mind," said Morgan. "You know where to find us."
"Yeah," whispered Prentiss. "I know. Take care of Pen for me. And, please take care of yourself."
"I will," said Morgan. "Always."
Morgan backed away from Prentiss and he joined Garcia at the elevator. Prentiss stood at her doorway watching the two of them entering the elevator lift while waving at her. Prentiss waved back at them while watching the elevator go down. She saw Garcia leaning on Morgan's shoulder while crying. Prentiss closed the door to her flat and Garcia shared the selfie photo on Prentiss's cell phone screen. Prentiss took one look at the photo and she dropped face down on her bed crying her eyes out. She was heartbroken.
"I love you, Derek," cried Prentiss. "I love you!"
Present Day; March 16, 2016: 11 pm
At Quantico, JJ found Prentiss alone in the ladies room tearfully looking at herself in the mirror. Prentiss looked at JJ's reflection behind her reflection.
"Hey," said JJ. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm scared," tearfully answered Prentiss.
JJ surprisedly looked at her.
"What?" asked Prentiss.
"I'm...surprised," answered JJ. "After nine years, Emily, 'I compartmentalize better than most people' Prentiss is finally feeling scared."
"How did you know I was in here?" asked Prentiss.
"If Spence were the one who was taken instead," answered JJ. "Then I would have eventually come in here, myself."
"I've lost so many good people before, JJ," said Prentiss. "Matthew, Sean, Jeremy, Tsia, Louise and even myself! But, I've never felt before the way that I'm feeling now because Derek might be dead!"
"You're extremely scared and worried about Morgan," said JJ. "I know the feeling. When Spence got shot in his neck, I was so scared that he wouldn't make it. And after he did make it, a dirty cop tried to shoot him dead and a fake orderly tried to poison him. Before that happened, I had never told Spence that I loved him before. And, I was so scared that I would never get to tell him that I loved him. After Penelope shot that orderly, I told Spence that I loved him right in front of everybody at his hospital bed. And, I tell him that I love him every day now. You haven't said out loud yet to Morgan that you love him. And now, you're scared that you'll never be able to tell Morgan that you love him, aren't you, Emily?"
Prentiss turned around to face JJ.
"Yeah," sadly admitted Prentiss. "I love him. I'm in love with Derek Morgan! It's funny. If somebody nine years ago had told me that I would fall in love with Morgan of all people, I would have laughed at that idea!"
"And nine years ago, I can see you laughing at that idea," smiled JJ. "You've found a way to reject Morgan and just about any other guy who's tried flirting with you for as long as I've known you. And now, you're feeling like you've cheated yourself out of having a romantic relationship with Morgan these last nine years."
"Yeah," admitted Prentiss. "That's exactly how I feel. How did this happen, anyway? How did I fall in love with him?! Derek Morgan is a pumped up side of beef! He's an annoying, egotistical alpha male who always thought that he was God's gift to women! He pranks and teases Reid all of the time and he phone flirts with Pen!"
JJ quietly laughed.
"What?" asked Prentiss.
"Now, that sounds like the Emily Prentiss I know who would think of anything negative to say about Morgan so she wouldn't fall in love with him," laughed JJ. "But, you're right. Morgan is all of those things. But, he's also a big brother protector type who always protected Spence and Penelope whenever they needed it. Spence, himself recently told me that! And, you did kiss Morgan. You can't help who you fall in love with, Emily. When was the moment you realized that you really liked Morgan?"
"My first year with you guys," answered Prentiss. "Morgan got out of me that I was a nerd who liked Kurt Vonnegut because he did, too. That made my day. And then after our multiple singer murder case, I showed Derek my new copy of Vonnegut's 'Mother Night' on the jet. And, during a detective's funeral when Derek told me he became a cop because of his father's murder right in front of him when he was 10. And, during the missing homeless people case in Kansas City, I saw him telling an old homeless woman to be careful because the world needed all of its beautiful women. I told Derek that he was a good guy because he makes people around him feel good. And, after the suicide case in Pittsburgh, I told Morgan that I wondered if we were really changing anything. And, he told me that he owned four properties because when he's not kicking down doors, he's smashing up walls because they both make him feel like he's changing something for the greater good. And, the time Morgan found me staked by Doyle, he told me that he was proud of me for saving Declan from his father's bad influence. And the time I got shot in my shoulder in San Bernardino, Morgan showed great concern for me because I had been hurt again..."
JJ smiled at Prentiss.
"What?" asked Prentiss.
"Now, you're saying a lot of positive things about Morgan," smiled JJ. "It wasn't just one single moment with him. It was a million little moments that made you really like Morgan."
"Yeah," said Prentiss. "Morgan has always found a way to say something to me that feels so heartwarming and sweet. But then, he would annoy me by hitting on me! He's always tried to get me to go out with him or to have sex with him. When we found out that Gideon had quit was the time I told him, 'I will go out with you when pigs fly!' When he got me into a recertification program because of what Doyle did to me, I told him I would do anything to make things up to him. Big mistake! He tried to make me bring him coffee and give him a massage every morning!"
"That's...terrible," laughed JJ.
"And, I told him that he was terrible," laughed Prentiss. "When I first came back from London, I told him that I was staying at a hotel until I found a new place to live. Derek offered to let me move in with him if I let him show me just how much he's missed me."
"What did you say to that?" asked JJ.
"I told him I would if he'd let me point my gun at his crotch!" answered Prentiss.
JJ gasped.
"I was so bad," laughed Prentiss. "I said, 'I will take out all of the little Morgans!'"
JJ laughed, "Oh, that would end his mother's dream of him ever giving her grandchildren. You've outdone yourself, Emily."
"But, what really surprised me was after I said that, Derek picked me up hugging me and welcoming me home," said Prentiss. "He said he knew that the real Emily Prentiss was back because it wasn't really me if I didn't reject his advances!"
"And, he was right," smiled JJ.
"But, he's never given up on me," said Prentiss. "When Cat Adams told Reid that she would kill him first if she saw any agent in that restaurant, I quickly kissed Morgan just to lessen our looking like observing agents to her. But, I had no idea what that kiss would do to me. It was like I had a romance on/off switch that was off before that kiss."
"But, that kiss turned your romance switch on?" asked JJ.
"Yes," answered Prentiss. "And now, I can't turn it off whether I want to or not. That kiss turned me into a teenaged girl who's just had her first kiss ever! It turned all of my 'no's' into 'yes's.' I'm hitting on him, now! I've invited him into my place after our dancing date. I've had amazing sex with him! I can't stop thinking about him! I can barely keep my hands off of him during cases. I've had to take cold showers if I was sleeping alone! That kiss with Morgan started a fire in me that I can't extinguish. And, I've been regretting it taking so long for us to be together!"
"I understand the regret," said JJ. "After my first time having sex with Spence, I told him I regretted not having sex with him overnight after he took me out to the Redskins game over ten years ago. But, Spence said we could make it up by remaining lovers for the rest of our lives."
"'Better late than never,'" laughed Prentiss. "That's what Derek said when I told him I regretted it taking this long for us to become lovers. And now, that's what I want with Derek. To be lovers with him for the rest of our lives. But, that might not happen now! Derek is somewhere now getting tortured and possibly killed by two or even more men!"
Tears started streaming down Prentiss's cheeks. Her heart was breaking.
"I can't lose him, JJ," cried Prentiss with her voice breaking. "Not now. Not after we've finally found each other after so many wasted years! We have to get him back!"
"I know," said JJ. "Come here."
Prentiss quietly sobbed on JJ's shoulder while hugging her tightly.
"Just let it all out," whispered JJ. "Then, when you're ready, let's go find out who took Morgan so we can get him back!"
"Thanks for being here for me," whispered Prentiss.
"No problem," said JJ. "If Spence were missing, you would have done the same thing for me."
"Yeah," admitted Prentiss. "I would have."
"Damn!" whispered JJ.
"What is it, JJ?" asked Prentiss.
JJ briefly laughed, "This positive discussion about Morgan just made me lose a small argument I recently had with Spence about Morgan! We can't live with Morgan and we can't live without him!"
JJ and Prentiss laughed. Reid knocked on the ladies room door.
"Ladies?" said Reid through the door. "Garcia's found something."
"I'm coming, Spence," said JJ. "Whenever you're ready, Emily."
JJ put her hand on Prentiss's shoulder and she walked out of the ladies room and she and Reid hugged each other.
"How's Emily holding up?" asked Reid.
"She's coping with it," answered JJ. "How are you holding up, Spence?"
"I don't want to lose him, JJ," answered Reid. "Morgan's the closest thing to a brother that I have. I've lost Maeve over three years ago to an unsub. We've lost Gideon over a year ago to an unsub!"
"Spence..." said JJ.
"I can't lose Morgan, too, JJ," cried Reid. "I just can't. I love him!"
Prentiss came out of the ladies room after hearing everything that Reid just said.
"Spencer," said Prentiss. "I know that you're scared. Hell, I'm scared, too."
Reid surprisedly looked at Prentiss. She wiped her tears.
"Yeah," said Prentiss. "Me! Emily, 'I compartmentalize better than most people' Prentiss is actually feeling scared that we're going to lose Morgan for good! I've been crying over him. I love him, too. But you, Garcia and I are living proof that the unsubs don't always win. Hankel tried to kill you, but you're still alive and he's not. Battle tried to kill Garcia, but she's still alive and he's not. Doyle tried to kill me, but I'm still alive and he's not. And, Derek Morgan is the strongest man I have ever met in my life! I even heard one of those abductors admitting that Morgan was strong over the phone. We all know that Morgan won't let those guys win without a fight. Come here."
Reid and Prentiss hugged each other tightly. JJ smiled at the two of them.
"Thank you, Emily," cried Reid. "I love you."
"I love you, too, handsome," whispered Prentiss. "I'm ready, JJ."
"Good!" said JJ. "Let's all go see what Garcia's found."
Garcia learned that the satellite phone was turned back on when Solomon tried calling for an extraction. She pinged it to a 20-mile radius of woods in Virginia. Garcia also traced who Solomon was calling. A man named John Bradley who was dishonorably discharged from the British Special Air Services. True SAS men were secretive and didn't get a tattoo put on their arm saying that they were SAS. But, dishonorably discharged SAS men do put that tattoo on their arm. Garcia needed somebody to call John Bradley again to track exactly where the satellite phone was.
In the cabin, Morgan was groaning that he couldn't use the satellite phone to call for help. Hank told Morgan that he needed to stop doubting himself and figure out what the BAU team would find when they came to the cabin looking for him. Morgan saw that he had a useless satellite phone in his hand. He clicked the phone's buttons seeing different screen images. Morgan stopped when he saw a redial list appear on the screen. Meaning, he could call back the cleanup guy who Solomon was calling. That would help Garcia track Morgan down through that phone and the BAU team could come to the cabin and rescue Morgan. Morgan redialed the phone number and John Bradley answered.
"Hello?" said Bradley. "Solomon, is that you, mate?"
Garcia saw that the satellite phone was active again and she tracked it.
"Oh," said Bradley. "It's you, Agent Morgan."
"Are you the cleanup crew?" asked Morgan.
"That's me," answered Bradley.
"Well," said Morgan. "You've got a whole hell of a mess to clean up when you get here tonight!"
Bradley laughed.
"Is that funny to you?" asked Morgan.
"What's funny is you're trying to keep me on the line so your team can find out where you are," said Bradley. "I'm closer to you than they are. All they will find is a corpse!"
"That's tough talk!" said Morgan.
"How are you feeling, Agent?" asked Bradley. "Not so good, I'll bet. So, yeah, I'll be seeing you really soon!"
Garcia tracked the satellite phone to the cabin where Morgan was being held in. The BAU team headed to the elevator.
"The helos are on the roof ready for immediate transport," said Hotch. "JJ..."
"I know I'm too far along to go with you," said JJ while holding her baby belly. "Give them one for me!"
"Hotch," said Prentiss. "Let me go with you. I promise I won't go rogue! You can handcuff me to somebody if you want to, but I can't just wait here. Please?"
"Handcuffing won't be necessary," said Rossi. "I'll watch her, Aaron."
"All right," said Hotch. "Let's go!"
Hotch, Rossi, Reid and Prentiss left Garcia and JJ by the elevator. JJ and Garcia hugged each other.
"He's going to be okay," whispered Garcia. "He's going to be okay. He's going to be okay."
"He's going to be our baby's godfather," said JJ.
Garcia gasped.
Hotch and Reid boarded one helicopter while Rossi and Prentiss boarded the second one. Both helicopters took off and flew towards the coordinates that Garcia gave them. John Bradley came into the cabin and saw all four of his colleagues lying dead. Morgan tried to attack him with the knife. But Bradley slammed Morgan down against a table, grabbed the knife and he nailed Morgan's right hand to the table with it. The two BAU helicopters landed by the cabin.
"Dave," said Hotch. "You and Prentiss cover the back entrance. Reid and I will take the front entrance."
"You were an expensive job, mate," said Bradley. "But after seeing this, I'll be happy to kill you for free!"
In the beautiful open field, Morgan was looking around for Hank.
"Dad?!" cried Morgan. "Pop! You promised that you were gonna stay with me through this! Where are you, Pop?!"
Hank put his hand on Morgan's shoulder from behind. Morgan turned around.
"I'm right here, son," said Hank.
In the cabin, Reid quietly came in the front entrance first. Bradley slapped Morgan's face trying to wake him up.
"Wakey, wakey," said Bradley. "It's time to die!"
Morgan noticed Reid by the front door.
"Not today!" groaned Morgan.
Bradley turned around and Reid shot him dead. Hotch came in behind Reid. Rossi and Prentiss came in the back entrance clearing the rest of the house. Reid looked around the room as he and Prentiss kneeled by Morgan's side.
"Four men already dead," said Reid. "You were right, Emily. Derek wouldn't let these guys win without a fight!"
Prentiss held Morgan's left hand. Hotch called in the EMTs to help Morgan remove the knife nailing his right hand to the table. The EMTs carried Morgan into the back of an ambulance.
"Thank you, Dad," whispered Morgan. "Thank you, Pop."
"Guys," said Reid. "I'll ride with Morgan to the hospital. Hotch...?"
"I'll have JJ and Garcia meet you there," said Hotch.
"Reid, wait," said Prentiss. "Let me go with him. Please?"
Reid saw the love and concern in Prentiss's eyes and he knew that if it was him lying in the ambulance instead of Morgan that JJ would want to ride in the ambulance with him.
"Okay, Emily," said Reid. "We'll meet you there."
Prentiss quickly hugged Reid whispering, "Thank you, Spencer."
Prentiss climbed into the ambulance and Rossi and Reid closed the back doors and hit the back of the ambulance twice. The EMTs drove them to the hospital.
"I'm scared, Pop," said Morgan. "I can't feel anything!"
"Derek," said Prentiss. "It's not your pop. It's Emily, baby. Can you hear me?"
"Dying is easy," said Hank. "You know what's hard? Not being there for your family. The people you love."
Suddenly, the heart monitor flatlined. Prentiss gasped. She grabbed Morgan's left hand with both of her hands.
"No!" said Prentiss. "Derek Morgan, don't you dare do this to me! Not after all those wasted years that we were not a couple! Listen to me! Reid died and he was resuscitated! Pen died and she was resuscitated! Hell, I also died and I was resuscitated! You told me back then to hold on, and now I'm telling you to hold on! You are the strongest man I have ever met in my life! Don't leave me now, Derek. Please come back to me!"
In the beautiful open field, Morgan and Hank heard every word Prentiss just said.
"It sounds to me like she loves you, son," said Hank.
"Yeah," said Morgan with his voice breaking. "And, I love her, too, Pop! I always have! I wanna be there for Emily, Mom, my sisters, Reid. All of them! But, what if I'm not strong enough?!"
"That's why I've walked you through those moments," said Hank. "So you could see what she's just told you and what I've seen for the last 30 years. You are strong enough! You always have been. I love you, son. More than you will ever know."
Morgan and Hank hugged each other tightly.
"I love you, too, Pop," cried Morgan.
"Now, go be with her!" ordered Hank.
Back in the ambulance, Prentiss turned to the EMT who was holding the defibrillator paddles.
"You, do it now!" ordered Prentiss.
The EMT used the paddles on Morgan's chest. The heart monitor's flatlining turned back into a heartbeat. Morgan started breathing again. Prentiss breathed a huge sigh of relief and kissed his left hand.
"Thank you, baby," tearfully whispered Prentiss. "Thank you."
Three days later, Morgan woke up in his hospital bed to see Prentiss sleeping with her head on pillows by his lap. Garcia, JJ and Reid were sleeping in chairs behind Prentiss. Garcia woke up first.
"Hey, you," smiled Garcia. "Guys, look who's back!"
Reid and JJ both woke up and saw that Morgan was awake.
"Derek, hi," smiled JJ.
"Morgan," said Reid. "Welcome back."
"How long...?" asked Morgan.
"Three days," answered JJ.
"Thank you," said Morgan.
"Oh, wild horses, Derek," smiled Garcia. "Wild horses! I'll get the doctor! Em?"
Garcia tapped Prentiss twice on her shoulder and left to get the doctor. Prentiss looked up to happily see that Morgan was awake.
"Hey," whispered Morgan.
"Hi," smiled Prentiss.
"I'm sorry," said Morgan.
"For what, baby?" asked Prentiss.
"I didn't bring home the pizza," answered Morgan.
"That's okay," laughed Prentiss. "We'll get some pizza delivered here if you want."
"Maybe later," said Morgan. "Let me look at you."
"Derek?" tearfully said Prentiss. "I love you. I realized I've never told you that before, so I'm telling you now. I love you, Derek Morgan!"
"Emily?" said Morgan.
"Yes?" said Prentiss.
"I love you, too," said Morgan with his voice breaking. "You have no idea just how much I love you!"
Prentiss's heart soared. She leaned over Morgan's bed and kissed the top of his head and she cried happily while hugging him. Morgan hugged her back while also crying happily.
"Does this remind you of anything, Mrs. Reid?" asked Reid.
"You know me too well, Dr. Reid," smiled JJ.
Reid and JJ kissed each other's lips. JJ lovingly leaned her head on Reid's shoulder as they both watched Morgan and Prentiss embracing each other. Garcia brought back Dr. Savannah Hayes and she checked out Morgan's vital signs.