Some time since the first chapter, eh? Sorry, my life got complicated!

Chapter II

"In this world it rains on the Just and the Unjust alike, but the Unjust have the Just's umbrellas." ~ Lynne Alpern

"Are you with him now?", Emily continued on the phone clearly stressed rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Yep.", Gloria was heard saying.

"Can Clyde come with you?", she asked, not sure if it was a good idea, though.

Hotch was listening carefully. Clyde? Was Gloria with Clyde? Where? What the hell was going on?

"No. Fortunately or not.", the other woman answered and Aaron was picturing her throwing a death glare to the man in front of her.

"OK. We'll keep in touch anyway.", Emily said.

"I have the files with me. I think we can take off the moment I get to Luton. Crossing the Atlantic in two days… I could have easily become a stewardess!", Gloria joked.

Luton? Atlantic? Gloria was in London with Clyde. With so many miles and Clyde involved, Hotch was getting the idea that whatever was going on wasn't for good, at all…

"Just come back here as soon as you can.", Emily replied sternly ignoring her friend's attempt to lighten the mood.

She knew that Gloria had good intentions but at that moment there was no way to make the facts easier.

"Em, relax.", the younger agent spoke smoothly.

"Are you relaxed with all this?", Emily spat back accusingly.

"No but, for God's sake, learn first if it's a spoon of water or the ocean before you decide to get drown in it!", Gloria replied unnerved. "And from what I see here nothing is clear."

"Is it not clear or is it you that you don't want to see it clearly?", Emily asked sternly, only thinking at that point that she had a subordinate of hers with a huge luggage dealing with high rated people and the man that almost got her killed, so she couldn't be 100% impartial.

"If you didn't think that I am that objective, I shouldn't be the damn liaison.", her friend replied dangerously calmly.

Hotch knew that tone. Gloria wasn't the type of person to defend herself. She always just stated facts. Emily under different conditions wouldn't have questioned her like that, but if only one thing was clear was the fact that Emily wasn't herself.

Emily had regretted the words the moment they had left her mouth. It was her that sent Gloria there to play the politically correct liaison and all this wasn't in her new job description. But she could do it, no question. At the end of the day, spies can be perfect in dealing with diplomacy and politics and so on, if they want. Gloria was the only one in the whole office with all the experience to read through the lines and see what the case was, if there was one to start with and Emily trusted her completely.

"Ria, can you just follow what I said and fly back without the chitchatting part?", Emily replied feeling guilty but her tone didn't reveal that to the other woman.

"Yes, Ma'am.", Gloria replied and hang up.

Emily threw the phone on the nightstand and tried to get up but Hotch grabbed her hand.

"Emily, I've asked you before. What's going on?", he asked concerned.

"I have to set up a meeting with your Director and Strauss. You have to be there but I will tell you the moment I finish with the calls."

"So about the issue, you, you are sure.", Aaron answered letting her hand.

"Sure or not, since they have proof that something is possibly going on we have to act, at least take precautions.", she replied professionally getting up and heading to the study of the house.

Same time, London, UK

At the other side of the Atlantic, Gloria was sitting opposite Clyde at the office of a hotel suite, dropping her phone in front of her, a skeptical look on her face. Clyde had been watching her while she was talking to Emily on the phone quite intensely and this was unnerving her. The guy had something in his head.

"Trust is gained, you know.", Clyde said to her in his 'I know it all' tone.

"Trust is proved, that's what I know.", Gloria answered throwing him another death glare. Was this guy talking about trust? Was he for real?

"She is getting stressed too much, that's not good. Emily wasn't like that.", he changed the subject.

"You are judging people. You weren't like that.", she raised her eyebrows, grabbing her phone to throw it in her bag and put the files in order in it.

There was no reason for Gloria to play the politically perfect with Clyde. She had enough with the rest, but with him, there was no reason to bother. He was her team leader and her boss for three long operations. He knew her and she knew his faults. She had one on her back.

"Gloria, there's something else I want to tell you.", Clyde started making her look back at him.

"Easter, I have an over-Atlantic flight ahead of me and I don't think that's related to the cases.", she cut him off.

"It's related to the job.", he continued strictly, "Not many around here liked Emily's ways of moving around offices and dealing with some issues."

"'Offices'? She stayed here the proper time and then she moved somewhere else. And 'issues'?", she asked in an indifferent tone, even if she was quite intrigued and she had a pretty clear idea in her head that she was one of the 'issues'.

"She is walking on fragile glass.", Clyde continued, ignoring her. He was going to finish what he was planning to say and not let her habits of playing the smart-ass get in the way. She couldn't imagine where all this was going. "And things don't look good for her, if this case doesn't end well…"

"This case that we don't know if it exists, you mean.", Gloria said starting to get tense. This should better be a joke…

"It does exist to me and some others. Gloria, I am just letting you know, as a friend of hers as I am."

Gloria shook her head ironically.

"You are saying to me that Emily's place is on the line for what? Do you have a serious damn reason for that? Because what you just said was bullshit.", she tried to control her temper.

"And I know, also, that you are not the best person to tell you, but I have to.", he kept on, still ignoring her.

"Sure I am not the best person, because I've seen this before…", Gloria murmured angrily.

This couldn't be happening again, with her involved again… But this with Emily was different from back then… Gloria was thinking that there was nothing to worry about, as she got up from her chair, not wanting to carry on with the matter. Emily had an unquestionable career with no black spots and she had connections. Moreover, nobody had made apparent moves to move ahead of her and the 'people' above hadn't chosen anybody to move them ahead of her, as far as she knew herself, of course.

"No. Because…", Clyde tried to continue in the same tone still siting down.

"Because what, Clyde? Because I am one of the fucking 'issues'?", Gloria snapped, she was already unnerved with him chatting political games with her and implying that she was a reason to a game about to be played. "What's their damn problem? That, after I spent 15 years underground in one way or another, she helped me to a normal office position, trying to be useful behind a desk, because in the field I am too much of a problem because of you? What do they want me? Fired? Dead? What, for God's sake?"

"Bloody hell! More than that normal position, Gloria!", he exclaimed.

"What?!", she got clearly confused.

"You are the wrong person because you are the one that they want above her!"

"Clyde, are you out of your freaking mind?", she was shocked.

"When Emily promoted you, what you've done for this job surfaced again, you got attention. You are vital in this force, Gloria, and you stayed beneath the surface for too long while you are incredibly efficient. That's a truth and these above can see now.", Clyde admitted.

"I have a hell of a luggage that can't show good.", she said looking at him with meaning and disbelief.

It had been known that she had a relationship with her boss. This wasn't impressible at all… Clyde knew it perfectly and personally.

"Nobody remembers rumors and stories. Nothing was proved and he is… not here.", he replied. "With Emily sending you here, you even proved that, despite your notorious political skills, you can make it. I asked around. People are impressed, Gloria, honestly and they think that Emily is holding you back, while she moves around her first year back in Interpol."

Gloria sat down. This was too much. She had made her mind many years ago that she was never going to move up the ladder. Some other 'people' tried to be sure of that. They didn't achieve it due to other reasons, not because they didn't want to, but after she just didn't care. She was doing her job because that was the right thing to do, she was meant for it, as Hotch had told her before. Did she have actually a potential? Did she actually want it? But now? And like this? If Emily hadn't tried to help her, if she had still been dealing with low-rate cases and getting ignored about a stupid cold surveillance car in the London office, nobody would have even remembered that she was still alive, let alone what she had done. That was unfair from every aspect for her and for Emily.

"I can't believe it, Easter."

"You will when they contact you. You did a lot for this job, you'll want something back. That's normal. But I have to warn you. If you move against Emily, I am the only one that can make it all go down, even if I don't want to.", he continued in dangerous tone.

Gloria turned to him surprised. The drugs. He was the only one with proof that for whatever reason she slipped down there. He covered up the hospital tests at the time of her injury, due to his guilt. And now he was using it for leverage... That man just used people like cards. He had his 'human' moments, but at the end of the day he used whatever useful and needed. That was no news to Gloria. She wasn't surprised with Clyde's declaration that he would keep Emily's position safe. She was surprised that he was actually considering the possibility of her playing any game against Emily. She had thought that he knew her better than that. She was offended but she wasn't planning on clearing up her place. He wasn't worth.

"Thank you for enlightening me.", she replied sternly.

She got up and left with no other words told, leaving Clyde in his thoughts. He was thinking that if he had pushed her, himself, to move up, if he was the one to make those people see, they wouldn't have come to this situation. 'People' accused Emily of holding her back, while they should have accused him... In any way, he knew that Gloria wasn't that type of person. However, he knew something else, too, something that could bring the trust between the two women down hard. Apparently, Gloria had moved pass that, she had decided that it wasn't Emily's fault, it was no one's fault, but fate's. But he couldn't be sure that no circumstances could make it surface again and, ironically, there were some details in these files that could trigger memories…

Gloria was driving to the airport nervously, while the London rain was falling heavily on the windshield of the car. She was wondering how much of all that Emily knew. She knew some, obviously, that's why the extra stress. But she didn't know it all and probably she didn't need to...

"Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet." ~ Roger Miller

Some Clyde in this chapter! And some enlightening about Emily's weird behavior.

Two spoilers since it took me sooo long to update: 1. There will be much of a tension between my two favorite women of my stories. 2. The case is coming in the next chapter with all the team and Strauss. (For me she is still alive, for the time being at least...)

Leave a comment to ensure me that you still remember the story! ;)