"Love will find a way through paths where wolves fear to prey."

— Lord Byron

Erin waited, in the backseat of the SUV. Every traffic light felt like an eternity. She was supposed to be scared. There was so much on the line, but she was innocent, she swore an oath to protect the Justice System. The system would serve her today, it had to...There was no other option.

She pulled her coat around her, reaching down to adjust the thermostat. She wasn't cold, but she needed to have control over something. "Agent Mahoney?"

"Yes Ma'am?" The agent adjusted the rearview mirror to meet her eyes.

"What's the ETA?"

He tapped the screen of the GPS, observing the traffic patterns. "Another 10 minutes or so. If the traffic stays light."

She checked her watch and prayed for a traffic jam. Doubtful, on the Express Lanes and she would never intentionally wish harm on anyone, but if a 3 car pile up just happened to happen, Erin would never complain about traffic again. Her foot tapped anxiously against the floorboard.

Agent Jones watched her, quizzically through the mirror, on the passenger side. "Everything alright, Ma'am?"

Tick tock, tick tock.

"Fine. Thank you Agent," Strauss said before falling silent again. She had to come up with a game plan and only had about ten minutes to formulate it. Unfortunately for her, all her mind could concentrate on was David and how worried he would be. Stress wasn't good for his heart. Did he take his statins before they left the house? She blinked, trying to clear her mind. He was free and she was the one about to be locked in an interrogation room for the next two days until the Government that she had dedicated the last 15 years of her life to, decided to cut her loose or officially charge her with a crime. Her thoughts turned back to David, he better remember to take his pills. Concentrate, Erin, she mentally chided herself. She was about to go into battle and she needed to be armed with a winning strategy if she had any hopes of seeing her children in the next few years, without plexiglass between them. She let her hand rest against the swell of her abdomen. She had the greatest motivation in the world. Her son and daughter grew stronger every day, she refused to give birth in a prison cell.

Tick tock.

"Who's first at bat?" Dave asked, rushing into the BAU conference room. He looked around at his team, situated at the round table.

Penelope swallowed nervously, "they took Reid in about 15 minutes ago."

"What about representation?" Dave chewed the inside of his lip, the last thing they needed was for Stan to drop the ball.

"The attorney got here 5 minutes before the meeting started."

"Was he briefed?"

"Barely."

"Great…" The attorney they had, had no clue about who or why he was there.

Their only hope was the conversation Stan had with him on the drive over.

"State your name and rank." Reid catalogued his interrogator's face to memory. As the other man activated the tape recorder. The man's yellow tie, matched the color of his fake smile. Rossi's lawyer stood to the side of the room. He leaned over at a safe distance from Reid's ear. "You know nothing. The Bureau has 48 hours to bring up charges. So far, they have nothing."

Reid nodded in response.

"My name is Dr. Spencer Reid, Special Agent with the Behavioural Analysis Unit."

"Agent Reid," The man leaned back in his chair and folded his hands across his lap. A gesture that was supposed to manipulate Spencer into letting his guard down.

"How long have you been with the Bureau Agent Reid?" The interrogator's tongue flicked against his front teeth. The canines shown prominently in the dim light.

"Seven years, 5 months and 14 days." He rattled off the statistics like it was second nature.

"Do you enjoy your work?"

Reid nodded his head, "I do," he paused slightly, "I enjoy my work."

"Are you close with your team?"

"Yes." Reid nodded. "Very." He bit out, deliberately keeping to one word answers.

"Have you ever had a problem with one of your superiors?"

"What kind of problems?" Spencer asked, in an even measure.

The interrogator paused, he could feel the agent stalling for time. He leaned across the table. Not close enough to invade Reid's personal space, but enough to try and intimidate him. "You're the youngest member of your team."

"I am. Although, I can assure that I'm more than qualified to be here. I have an IQ of 187. I hold 3 PHDs in math, engineering and chemistry as well as 2 BA's. in Psychology, Sociology and most recently, Philosophy. I read 20,000 words per minute and have an eidetic memory."

"Agent Reid- this is not a question of your qualifications."

"Actually, it's 'Doctor Reid."

"More to the point, Have you ever felt like you were being bullied or targeted by someone on your team?"

Reid's temper flared, his upper body rose up across the table, coming closer to the attorney leaned over and whispered in Reid's ear. "Get the details. Ask for specifics. Have him define what he means by bullying or being targeted."

"Can you provide more details?" Reid shrugged slightly, "I'm not sure what you're asking."

The interrogator leaned across the table, "has anyone on your team ever said or done anything that made you feel 'less than?' An outsider? Did you ever feel like you didn't belong? Maybe a joke went too far, or a friendly pat on the back actually made you feel uncomfortable."

"No, Sir. I've never been sexually harassed by anyone in the FBI, but the term 'Bullying' originated in the 18th and 19th centuries, it is defined as physical or verbal harassment most commonly linked to death. In answer to your question, I don't feel like my team or anyone in the BAU, is trying to kill me."

The interrogator cleared his throat, uncomfortably. "That's good to know, Agent."

"Let me tell you about my team. My team is my family, we work together, we enjoy each other's company outside of work, but you already know this. So, ask me what you really want to know. As you said, you didn't ask me here to talk about my qualifications."

"Have you ever felt personally victimized, targeted or harassed by your section chief, Erin Strauss?"

Reid glared across the table, this interview was a waste of time. "No."

"Do you feel that she has prioritized your team more in the last 6 months or so?"

Reid tilted his head, slightly. "Can you be more specific?"

The interrogator nodded, "Have you noticed a change in the way Erin Strauss regards your team, compared to the Red Cell team, led by Agent Cooper?"

"Her standards haven't lowered. Are you looking for something in particular?"

"Since her relationship with Agent Rossi began-"

"When..did that happen, exactly? I'd like to help, but I'm not sure of the timeline that you're speaking of-" He watched the interrogator's carotid jump, the words hit their mark.

Reid leaned forward again, going in for the kill. Too many people had tried to come between his team. Including, Erin Strauss herself, once upon a time; but not today. If Rossi believed in Strauss, Reid would be in full support of that. Nobody was going to rip up their family. "My answer to you, Sir. Is that this meeting will prove nothing. I have never noticed any inappropriate behaviour or favoritism toward my team, in the entire time I've worked in the unit. In fact, just the opposite. Chief Strauss, has always, as she reminds us constantly, put the needs of the Agency first. When it comes to ensuring that every agent on her team performs his or her job and conducts their personal lives with the decorum and professionalism expected of a member of the FBI. The woman lives and breathes Fidelity, Bravery and Integrity. I might not always agree with her methodology but I know that everything she has done was to ensure that under her leadership, her teams are performing their best. "

"Agent Reid," The interrogator held up his hand. "I didn't ask you here to listen to you sing her praises."

"I know." Reid said sharply, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're trying to build a case against her, but the truth is the truth and facts are facts. I can't invent false memories and accusations, just to make you happy. That's not how I operate, Sir. As a member of Internal Affairs, I would think the Code of Ethics wouldn't allow you to operate that way either. If you are here looking for a reason to fire Chief Strauss or break up the unit, I can't help you."

The interrogator closed the file in front of him, "You're free to go, Agent." He said cooly. The interrogator glanced down at his watch. 2 hours down, 46 more to go. Tick tock. "Send in Penelope Garcia."

"For future reference, it's Dr. Reid."

Reid grabbed his bag and made his way to the door. Penelope was seated outside, "How bad was it?" She asked, biting her lip.

"Not bad." He gave a small shrug to set her at ease. "Listen to the attorney and don't focus too hard on the questions."

"What did you focus on?" She asked, knowing how Reid could unwillingly hyper focus on everything.

"The interrogator's teeth." He said, brushing passed her.

Penelope swallowed tightly, she took a deep breath and tried to channel all of her positive energy into this interview. Rossi was counting on it. The door to the conference room opened and a man she never met, stepped out into the hall.

"Are you, Penelope Garcia?"

She swallowed again and took a step forward. "I am. The one and only!"

The man stepped forward and reached to shake her hand. The attorney had been swapped out. He kept his voice down and they were far enough away that they couldn't be heard by the members of the ethic's committee. "I'm Frank, from Carter and Newsome. I'm your representation." Penelope took his warm hand in hers. She liked Frank, his eyes were soft and he spoke kindly.

"Thank you for being here." She said.

He nodded. " Let's take this somewhere else." He glanced around, "The walls have ears here."

Penelope nodded, most of the FBI building was under constant surveillance. "Follow me. Let's go somewhere they can't hear us." She led him to her office and closed the door.

"Have a seat," She offered and took her position at her desk.

Frank looked around the room in disbelief. He had never seen that much color inside an FBI building. Recovering quickly, he asked, "how much did you know about the supposed 'indiscriminate relationship?"

"I saw them, kiss..once. Through a window. That's not as creepy as it sounds." She covered quickly. "They were in Rossi's office, the blinds were open and I saw it."

Frank nodded, mentally putting together a strategy. "Okay, who else saw this incident?"

"J.J.-I mean-uh Agent, Jenifer Jareau…" On a separate incident, back in May, uh.. Dr. Reid and I saw Rossi and Strauss come out of the same hotel, in May. They staggered their exits but it seemed pretty obvious." She gave a little shrug as if to say 'what can you do?'

"Okay." Frank nodded, tightly smiling at Penelope. He needed her to relax, "The committee is going to try to get in your head. They will try to manipulate you and play on your romantic side. Don't let them. Ask for clarifications when you're asked a question. Don't volunteer any information. If you feel uncomfortable at any point, just give me the signal."

She nodded her head, She pushed the door open to the conference room and peeked inside while 5 men sat at the table. None of them noticed her.

"I need a minute, Sir. Frank-" she stumbled over her words and rushed out of the office, towards the ladies room.

Frank smiled, "Take all the time you need." He picked up a nearby figurine and tossed it in his hand. This could get interesting, really quickly. He put the toy back and turned on his heel and headed for the meeting.

He let himself into the conference room without a word to the committee.

"Where's your client?" One of the men asked, stiffly.

Frank shrugged, "Ladies room. She'll be here in a minute."