A/N: Sorry for the long wait. My hubby and I have bought a house, moved and found out that we (apart from a miracle of God) cannot have kids so it's been an up and down end to the year. This episode was also hard to write and I got stuck several times. However, the muse decided to reappear after Christmas so I've got this chapter up and one waiting in the wings with my beta. I'm also working on chapter 8. Ahowell1993: No Whitney's not a closet girlfriend in my world. You'll have to wait and see on a marriage. Whatif-Ifonly: Yeah I always thought Reid was slighted a bit in the end of the episode. Plus no way could he have dived out of that explosion like that without some burns. ButFamilysBigger: I despise Mary Sue's so I'm trying to keep Whitney real. I'm glad you like her. Daisyangel: Thanks. I hope you like this one too. LaRieNGuBleR: As I said above, I always felt Reid's injuries were ignored. Even though he had a little closure in taking his mom home, it still felt off. So I wrote it my way. Charmony: I can't say anything I haven't already said so I'll simply say thank you.

Don't own them but as imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I shall endeavor to meet the expectations. Beta read by the incomparable Charmony

Chapter 6 Lesson Learned

Hotch's quick steps paused as he watched JJ and Prentiss interact. Even though the brunette's arrival was sudden and unexpected, possibly even suspicious, she seemed to be integrating into the team with little difficulty.

"We've caught a new case. The DEA took down what they thought was a meth lab, but then they found bomb making equipment." He passed the crime scene photos around the table. "No one was apprehended because there was an escape tunnel under the house. They also found some cryptic messages that indicate a connection to Al-Queda."

Prentiss frowned as she studied the paper. It had been awhile since she had read Arabic but as she recited the words aloud, they slowly came back to her.

"Crescent?" Gideon asked, breaking a moment's stunned silence.

"Some Muslims use a lunar calendar. I'd have to look it up to know for sure." Prentiss met the man's gaze squarely. She felt slightly off balance around Gideon, as the senior agent had yet to acknowledge her as anything more than an annoyance.

"The next crescent moon is in two days," piped up Garcia, tapping quickly on her keyboard.

"Who is the CIA looking at?" Gideon asked.

"A ghost prisoner in Gitmo who goes by the name Jind Allah. No one knows what his real name is, even though he's been in custody for several months," Hotch answered.

"We'll need to head to Cuba and talk to Jind Allah directly. Reid you're coming with me. The jet leaves in thirty minutes," Gideon said as he hurried from the room, the meeting breaking up behind him.

"Jason," Hotch called to his colleague as he tried to catch him. "I think you should take Agent Prentiss with you."

"I don't know her capabilities in the field."

"Well neither do I but we have to find out sooner or later. Besides, she's the only one on the team who's fluent in Arabic."

Gideon's next protest was silenced as Prentiss lifted her go bag into view. He shot Hotch a dirty look but surrendered to the Unit chief's orders.

Despite being focused on the chess board in front of him, Spencer listened to the interplay between his father and their newest agent and shook his head. Waiting until she was distracted he murmured, "Be nice Dad."

Gideon raised an eyebrow at his son before glancing out the window and tightening his safety belt. "Game over," he announced just as the plane banked hard to the right, forcing everyone to grab for a hand hold.

"I was winning," Spencer complained, glancing at the scattered chess pieces after Gideon had explained the reason for the plane's sudden maneuver.

"Actually, he would have had you in three," Prentiss pointed out to the young doctor's surprise. Turning to Gideon she asked, "What's the plan sir?"

"We get Jind Allah to talk."

Spencer exchanged a look with Prentiss as the plane landed in Cuba. It seemed a simple statement for a much more complicated task. They quickly gathered their belongings and followed Gideon into the facility.

Once inside, Gideon headed toward Jind Allah's cell while Spencer and Prentiss set up in the control room. They watched as the CIA interrogation unfolded before Gideon interrupted it. Spencer fought a smile as he watched his father match wits with not only the two CIA agents but also Jind Allah before the other two agents stalked out of the room. He shifted slightly as his father engaged their suspect in conversation, his gaze sliding sideways to observe Prentiss' reaction to the screen.

After observing the conversation for some time, Prentiss frowned as a particular phrase caught her attention.

"He's Egyptian."

"Are you sure?" Spencer asked quickly

"Yeah. It's the way that he pronounced his 'J'. He's probably from Cairo."

Spencer relayed the information to his father, marveling at their newest agent's speed in recognizing clues and sorting out puzzles. He had understood his father's concern when Prentiss had shown up unannounced. But it seemed she was going to prove her worth on her very first case with the team. He gave her a quick smile as Jind Allah acknowledged Gideon's comment about his Egyptian heritage. "Looks like you were right. I wonder what else we can get him to reveal about himself."

Prentiss relaxed slightly as the young doctor acknowledged her. She knew it had been several years since she had used Arabic to any significant extent, leading her to doubt whether or not she could actually follow through on her first assignment with the team, and her relief at finding she could ran deep. Especially since she knew neither Hotch nor Gideon trusted her, and with good reason it seemed, as Hotch was clearly not expecting her as she had been led to believe. This had stunned her, and that in addition to trying to figure out the team's dynamics had left her feeling off her game. There was also the easy familiarity between Gideon and Reid adding to her sense of confusion. So knowing that she was finally finding her footing, even if it was just with the youngest agent on the team, boosted her confidence enough that she felt ready for whatever happened next.

Her musing was interrupted as Gideon returned to the control room.

"Now we wait to see whether or not he'll start to trust me."

"Do you think he's suspicious of the time frame?"

"No, not yet." Gideon glanced down at his son and his pages of notes. "Did you catch anything useful?"

"I don't know. He seems relaxed with you, but it could all be an act. We already know he has a strong will and he's able to withstand a normal interrogation."

"Keep watching. You'll find something. We've got a long way to go yet." Gideon left the room suddenly, leaving Spencer shaking his head. Prentiss blinked.

"Is he always this abrupt?"

The young man snorted softly. "You haven't seen anything yet." He watched the screen for a few minutes before adding, "I think he's trying to trick Jind Allah. The sun hasn't set yet but Gideon is telling him that it has."

"Gideon is playing for time."

"Exactly. I just hope it works."

Prentiss frowned. "You don't sound very confident."

"It's not that I'm not confident. It's just you never know exactly what is going to happen. People are notoriously unpredictable." He returned his attention to the screen where Jind Allah was currently praying. "At least he believed Gideon when he said it was time for prayers."

Spencer and Prentiss stared at the screen as the two men began to talk after Gideon offered the man a bottle of water. Prentiss looked at Spencer with respect as he rapidly dissected the passages that were being quoted. The phone rang and Prentiss answered it, keeping her voice soft so she wouldn't distract her colleague.

"They're hitting the second location in a few minutes. Hotch is going to call when they know more."

Spencer nodded briefly as he remained focused on the screen. He smiled as Gideon once again slipped out of the room using the pretense of prayer time to cover his exit. Suddenly the phone rang again.

"You've got Gideon, Prentiss and me," Spencer said as he answered the call.

Hotch's voice came through the speaker. "It's empty but we're looking for escape tunnels as we speak."

"Call us," Gideon commanded.

"We're running out of time. The attack is supposed to take place in less than 24 hours."

"So getting Jind Allah to talk is our only chance of finding them."

"I'm going to confront him with the truth."

"What are you going to do?"

"Show him my hand."

Prentiss and Spencer shared identical looks as Gideon hurried back into the interrogation room. The young doctor retook his seat, staring intently at the screen. Prentiss remained standing, fighting the urge to pace. She was stunned at Gideon's brashness. There was no way that this was going to work. She was brought out of her musing by Spencer's voice talking to his father over the radio. She glanced over as she realized that the young man was dialing the phone as if he were reading Gideon's mind as he came through the door.

"Got Hotch?" Gideon asked as he took the phone. Prentiss closed her eyes as Gideon shouted his warning, understanding hitting her hard. All three waited, hardly daring to breathe as they waited for information on the rest of the team.

"Is everyone okay? What happened?" Spencer demanded as Gideon disconnected the call.

"It was rigged to blow. A SWAT agent was killed in the blast." Gideon closed his eyes. "Good catch on his tell Reid. Fortunately Anthrax wasn't involved."

"So this wasn't the final target." Prentiss felt oddly relieved but at the same time apprehensive. It seemed that they were going in circles. She waited until Gideon had returned to the interrogation room before speaking her fears. "We're running out of time. We still don't know who this man really is."

"We'll figure it out," Reid replied. "We have to."

Later that night, armed with Jind Allah's real name Jamal Abaza, Gideon confronted the two CIA agents who had previously conducted the interrogations. Spencer hid a smile as his father all but accused the men of stonewalling them. He followed as Gideon stormed out of the room in frustration with the non-committal answers.

"The CIA is tough. They play it close to the vest." Prentiss shook her head. "I'm surprised you got as much cooperation as you did."

Gideon shrugged. "Unfortunately if this doesn't work, many more people will die." He stared at the screen as the world around him faded and his mind focused solely on the task at hand.

"You need to get some sleep." Spencer's voice sounded at his elbow. "We're not going to get anything from the CIA for at least a couple hours."

"I'm fine Reid." He met his son's raised eyebrow and pointed glance head on. "You and Prentiss get some rest. We're back at it in three hours."

"Yes sir." The young doctor left the room with Prentiss just in front of him.

"Will he sleep?" she asked quietly.

"Probably not," Reid replied in a tone she couldn't quite place. "He can be quite hard headed at times."

"Yeah, I figured that out," Prentiss muttered softly. She blushed at her colleague's snicker. "I'm sorry. I just got here and I'm already bad mouthing the boss."

"It's not bad mouthing when it's true." Spencer paused outside the door to the room he and Gideon had been assigned. "Sleep well."

"Thanks. You too."

Gideon was the last one into the control room as the morning started. He immediately agreed with Spencer's assessment that Jind Allah was much calmer at the moment.

"Is that what we want?" Prentiss asked.

"I hope so." Gideon answered as he left the room to return to the interrogation.

Prentiss stopped her next question in mid-sentence when she realized he had left before glancing at Spencer.

"Aren't you worried? This may not work and we don't have a lot of time. Everything we've learned so far has come because Abaza was reacting emotionally."

Spencer half smiled. "I trust him."

"Yeah, but trusting someone doesn't mean that you know everything about them and that they're always right."

"I didn't say he was always right. I said I trust him because I know what he can do. There's a reason that Jason Gideon is one of the best profilers in the FBI. He gets the job done."

"Do I detect a bit of hero worship here?" Prentiss asked jokingly.

"It's more than that. I've known Gideon for most of my life because he saved my life." Spencer's voice took on a serious tone. "Emily, you haven't been here long enough to learn this yet, but Jason Gideon is my father."

Prentiss blinked at him. "What did you just say?"

"Jason Gideon adopted me when I was six years old after my parents were brutally attacked. That's why I trust him. I know him." Suddenly an intensity that she hadn't seen yet surfaced. "Dad will get to the bottom of this even though his methods can be unconventional. If they weren't, I wouldn't be here."

She stared at him, unable to fully comprehend what he had just said. "Your father? Jason Gideon is your father?"

Spencer nodded. "Yes, he is."

"Does the director know?"

Of course. We had to get special permission to be on the same team, and I'm not allowed to make a big deal out of it. That's why I don't call him Dad when we are at the BAU unless I'm alone with him."

Prentiss turned back to the screen, but she continued to throw curious glances sideways at the young man sitting next to her as they got back to work.

Spencer slowly followed his father into the interrogation room. Abaza was sitting in the chair facing away from them. He tried to calm his nerves as he listened to the two men interact. His mind was swirling with thoughts of Hotch and Morgan back in Virginia trying to locate the terrorists before the bomb was detonated, as well as concern that the prisoner would know that Gideon was leading him on. His musings were interrupted by Abaza's question.

"Where you successful?"

"Somewhat." Spencer took a deep breath before recounting everything they had learned. A look similar to admiration crossed Abaza's face.

"I would say that you were more than somewhat successful," he said flatly. His gaze returned to Gideon as the senior agent pressed a hand to his ear.

"Are you sure?" Spencer cast a worried look at his father and followed him out of the room. He took a deep breath as the door closed.

"Do you think we fooled him?"

"We'll find out in a minute. Have Garcia cue up the footage." Gideon waited as his son made the call and Prentiss pulled it up on the computer screen facing the door.

"We're ready," she said. Gideon glanced around the room, making sure that no sign of daylight was visible from the interrogation cell. He quickly opened the door.

"Something has happened?" Abaza asked innocently as the sounds of the news footage filtered through the room.

Gideon held the man's eyes as he confronted the prisoner's belief system.

"Those people tonight. They were innocent. They never hurt you!"

"They hurt me by existing!" Abaza snarled, now on his feet.

Prentiss fought to keep her hands still as she watched the drama unfolding. Just a few moments more and they would know the target. As the words 'shopping mall' filtered through her brain, she raced to grab her phone to relay the information to JJ. Gideon moved past her, opening the curtains and allowing the late afternoon sun to stream into the room as Spencer instructed Garcia to shut down the feed.

"Has the sun not set?" Abaza asked in disbelief.

Spencer couldn't keep back the slightly smug tone. "No." He closed the door as Abaza reacted in anger and frustration, attacking the guards who remained in the room.

Later on the jet, Spencer frowned at the chessboard as he listened to Prentiss and Gideon discuss the case.

"So it was all a chess game," he remarked as he moved his queen. Gideon nodded with a twinkle in his eye.

"Mate," he answered. Spencer shook his head in mock frustration at losing another game to his father.

"I quit, give up, yield, capitulate," he said as he stood up. "I'm going to take a nap." His father's knowing chuckle followed him as he curled up on the couch.

"Prentiss, you play?"

Prentiss shot him a startled look, then smiled. "Yes sir. I play."

Spencer smiled as he closed his eyes. "Finally," he thought. "She's finally winning him over."