Disclaimer: See first chapter.

Superman

"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope." – Dale Carnegie

"Morgan!" Hotch grabbed the agent's shoulder and pulled him back from the dashboard that his head had made contact with when he had been forced to slam on the brakes. What the hell is a tree doing in the middle of the road? Could this day get any worse? Oh God, I hope not.

"Crap!" Morgan's forehead already had a lump forming and the agent was out cold. He was going to have one hell of a headache when he woke up. Glancing beyond Morgan, Hotch took in a sharp breath at the sight of Savannah slumped against the door at a completely unnatural angle. Closing his eyes, he took a shaky breath and reached out, placing two fingers tentatively on her neck. His breath returned to him in a tremulous exhale when he felt a faint pulse beneath his cold fingertips. Opening his eyes, he assessed Savannah's condition, Had she gotten even paler since they had left her place just a few minutes ago? Was she going to make it? He felt her stir beneath his light touch.

Savannah felt heavy, like her whole body had been weighted down with a lead blanket. She grappled with fleeting consciousness, the effort causing her to become slightly nauseous. It had suddenly become an urgent necessity for her to open her eyes, though she did not know why. Something terrible had happened, but what it was had completely escaped her. She couldn't remember a damn thing, just knew that her arm hurt like hell and she felt sicker than she had in a long time.

This is worse than that time Becky and I drank those sailors under the table, she moaned. She could still remember how her stomach had punished her the next day, leaving her stranded on the cold tile of her bathroom floor for hours. Her head had hammered relentlessly in chastisement, pulsating in mockery of her one night out. She had vowed never to do that again, no matter how much her best friend begged her to, insisting that Savannah needed to get out more and meet some men.

She didn't know how Becky did it on an almost weekly basis and still managed to go to work the next day. Her friend was one of a kind that was for sure. Savannah's body, on the other hand, couldn't handle that kind of abuse on a regular basis. She had convinced Becky that once a month was more her speed and had even gotten her friend to join a health club on the guise of meeting men. That's where Becky had met Todd and now the two were getting married this spring. Ladies night out had gone by the wayside and Savannah had spent the past few weeks helping her best friend plan her wedding.

So what the hell happened? Why do I feel like I've just had a run in with a rogue tractor? Savannah couldn't recall a night out with her best friend, but knew that for her to feel this shitty, she probably had alcohol poisoning of some kind, which meant that she had to get up and get the poison out of her system. That was the only explanation her sluggish mind could come up with. Why won't my eyes open?

Panic gripped her heart as she implored her rebellious eyes to cooperate. What was that? A distant, feeble rumble reached her deafened ears as though through a thick wall. The timbre was deep and gave Savannah the impression that it was laced with concern and desperation.

"That's it, time to wake up," Hotch softly urged as he watched Savannah's eyes flutter beneath pallid eyelids which seemed glued shut. He had carefully repositioned her so that her neck was properly aligned, hoping that he had done so in time so that when she regained consciousness it would not be too stiff or painful. He waited, gently rubbing her cheek with his hand, willing her to wake. Getting no response, he again spoke to her, "Savannah, you need to wake up. Aiken needs you…I…need you… to…be…okay."

Her wound was no longer bleeding through the bandage, but he knew that it would need medical condition and that his own wound, which throbbed impatiently as though to remind him of its existence, needed attention as well. Morgan's wound had stopped its own attempt to bleed out, but now the young man also had a head injury to add to his list of ailments. Hotch could not fail them.

Wishing yet again that he had not had to slam on the brakes in the first place, he attempted in vain to rouse Savannah and Morgan once more before throwing the vehicle into reverse and turning around to head back to Savannah's. He had been so sure that Savannah had been about to waken and was disappointed when she remained unresponsive. He would attempt to get them to safety using the only other road out of her place. Knowing that time was of the essence, he drove as quickly as he could in the downpour which had thankfully lessened. Maybe nature had decided to grace them with a reprieve in the weather.

As he drove the short distance back to Savannah's Hotch pulled his cell phone out and threw it onto the seat when he saw the lack of bars that still registered on it. Maybe when the rain stopped altogether he would regain service. Yeah and maybe pigs would fly too, he snorted.

By the time he had reached Savannah's place, the rain had nearly completely subsided and Hotch stopped the SUV, retrieving the cell phone, praying for even a weak signal.

Savannah really wanted to open her eyes. The voice that beckoned her had indicated it was important for her to do so. There was something she needed to remember and someone she needed to help. If only her body and mind would cooperate.

Someone was touching her cheek. It didn't frighten her, but the removal of the hand was disconcerting. She wanted to tell whoever it was to return the comforting hand, wishing she could pull it back to her. She fought even harder to open her eyes and was rewarded when her eyes opened a slit, allowing a gray sliver of light to seep in beneath her thick eyelashes. Her eyelids closed once more and she painstakingly opened them, this time allowing a little more light in before they slid shut. The simple act was exhausting, but she strove to open them afresh and was rewarded as she blinked in grayish light, unseeing, but victorious nonetheless. A soft, contented sigh escaped her lips as the world around her began to come into a blurry focus. Where am I? She didn't recognize her surroundings and alarm caused her heart to flip-flop in her chest.

A half-sob from Savannah had Hotch discarding the useless cell phone once more. His eyes swept over to the agitated woman and he noted that her eyes had finally opened. She was gulping, drowning in panic and Hotch reached over to grasp her shoulder, offering her an anchor on which to focus.

"Savannah," Hotch spoke, hoping to dispel her confusion. "Savannah, you're safe. You're in Agent Morgan's SUV, I'm Agent Aaron Hotchner."

"Wh…what happened?" Savannah whispered as she lost the battle to keep her eyes open.

Relief surged through Hotch as he answered, "You and Agent Morgan have been injured. I'm going to get you both to a hospital. Do you know how to get to the hospital from your place? Which is the quickest route?" He prayed that it wasn't the one blocked by the tree and that she would remain conscious long enough to answer.

Savannah wanted to open her eyes again. She wanted to raise her hand and indicate the direction Agent Hotchner should take as she was flooded with memories of a missing Aiken, Morgan getting shot, and the reason her own arm ached, but her eyes and arm refused to obey the simple directive. Licking her dry lips, she drew in a deep breath and in a scratchy voice answered, "You need to take the old forty, but it's probably flooded in this storm, so you'll have to take the alternative route." The effort of talking made her want to give into the darkness which offered her rest, but she fought for control of her beleaguered mind and was rewarded when a surge of adrenaline flooded through her.

Yes! Her eyes had opened; she smiled in triumph, but frowned when she caught the troubled look that Agent Hotchner cast in her direction. Why did he look so defeated? He did not strike her as a man easily discouraged when she had met him earlier that day.

"What?" She managed to croak out.

"There's a tree blocking the alternative route," Hotch's voice cracked uncharacteristically and he swallowed the feeling of despair that threatened to overtake him. He had to get Savannah and Morgan medical help, no matter what it took. He would not fail them. Maybe the SUV would be able to wade through the flooded road. The FBI had chosen these vehicles as they could easily manipulate rough terrain. Surely they could ford through a flooded back country road. A look of determination replaced the momentary discouragement and he put the vehicle into gear, heading for the old forty.

"How far away is the hospital?"

"About an hour's drive from here," Savannah offered apologetically. Her grandfather had chosen this place because it was so far from what he had disdainfully called civilization. He had wanted to live in a place free of crowds, traffic, and pollution. She had often argued with him about how unsafe the location was given the flooding that storms caused and how far away from the hospital he was, but he had stubbornly insisted upon living there until he died.

Closing his eyes in irritation, Hotch smiled grimly, gripping the steering wheel tightly and resolving to make it to the hospital in record time, if he had to get out and push the damn vehicle himself. Perhaps the lull in rain would cause the flooding to disperse and they would breeze through the roads as though it had never rained.

So far, so good, he thought to himself as he had driven a quarter of a mile and so far there had been no flooding. Just as he decided that maybe their luck had suddenly taken a turn for the better, lightning lit the sky and rain burst forth as though a cosmic bucket had been overturned right atop them. He slowed his driving to a snail's pace, windshield wipers frantically swishing, losing the battle with the hammering rain.

"There's a downed tree on the route to Savannah's and the old forty is flooded. I'd like to take some men and a saw back to remove the tree so we can get through to her place and see what's happening," Officer Burrows approached the chief, Prentiss close behind.

"We ain't got much help to spare, why don't you take Cooper and see how much damage you two can do to that tree. Peters and Carter have called for backup at the Food & Gas, apparently someone shot the clerk. They also came across an abandoned SUV. Could be the one that the FBI was tracking," the chief didn't look up from what he was doing as he strapped on his weapon and got ready to go on patrol. The storm had really taken a toll. He had every man working and had even called over to Union County for extra help; they were only able to spare a few men as they too were dealing with the effects of the inclement weather.

"I'll help too," Prentiss offered.

"Your boss said to give you this message. He left to check on the SUV at the Food & Gas," Chief Anderson handed a handwritten note to Prentiss as he strode from the office.

Stilling the protest that Rossi was not her boss, on her tongue, she grabbed the note and quickly read it. Rossi wanted her to head over to the Food & Gas. Crushing the note in her hand, she made her way back out to her vehicle.

"Good luck with that tree," she smiled at Burrows as they both left the building, "let me know what you find."

"Will do ma'am," Burrows tipped his hat at her as he stepped into his vehicle.

"Yep, this is Dr. Reid's SUV," Rossi nodded at the officer who had stepped away from the shelter of the building to meet him when he had arrived. "Do you know what happened here?"

"No more than you do. Like I said, we left everything as we found it. The clerk inside was shot point blank in the head, most likely after his shirt was removed. You wanna go take a look at him? The coroner should be here in about fifteen minutes or so. He wasn't too happy when we woke him, but he's a good guy," Peters was more than happy to have someone else take over the crime scene.

"Yeah, I'll take a look," Rossi moved reluctantly from the SUV, noting the blood on the seat and floorboard and the acrid smell that emanated from the interior. He hoped Dr. Reid and Aiken were still alive, "Hey, did you find any keys on the clerk?"

"What?" Peters gave the agent a quizzical look, "Uh, no, we didn't really look for any keys though. The blood kind of made Carter a bit queasy and I know enough not to mess with a homicide before the coroner has been here. I think the kid, Billy Johnson's, truck is still here though," he said looking at his notes as he gestured toward the only other vehicle, a red truck, in the lot.

Nodding his head, Rossi pulled his cell phone out and dialed Garcia, giving her an update on his location and asking her for any information she could gather about the area surrounding the Food & Gas as well as the clerk, Billy Johnson, hoping that the red truck was his. It would make it much more difficult for them to find Dr. Reid and Aiken if they had been abducted by the killer and taken away in another vehicle.

It was difficult to cut through the thick tree in the pouring rain and to haul the heavy pieces away, but Burrows and Cooper were persistent and they soon had enough of the tree cleared away for their vehicle to drive through. They would worry about getting the rest of the road cleared after the storm had passed. For now, they set up orange cones and temporary barriers indicating the road was closed before driving through.

Water swirled around the wheels of the SUV; Hotch had to fight to keep the vehicle on the road as the current of the flooded road was surprisingly strong. He inched along, determined to make it through the flooded road and to the hospital, sure that the road wouldn't be flooded for more than a mile. He could barely see out of the windshield as it was pelted with rain, every few feet the water became deeper, swallowing more of the SUV in its muddy grasp.

"I think we need to turn around," Savannah's voice was unnerving in its calm assertiveness and Hotch peered cautiously in her direction, not wanting to take his eyes off the road for too long, afraid that he would forget where it was as he no longer had the ditches on either side to indicate where the road ended. She was staring straight ahead, a look of trepidation on her face.

"Hotch, I think she's right," Morgan's weak voice startled the driver. When had he regained consciousness?

"I have to get you two to the hospital," Hotch trained his eyes back on the road directly in front of him, or rather the water that had covered the road directly in front of him.

"There's no road up ahead," Morgan asserted, "look."

He had been so focused on looking at what lay just a few feet ahead of them that he had missed the danger that lie further ahead. Just a couple more feet and they would be trapped in a flood that was spread out like a lake. He stopped the vehicle; the tires were nearly completely covered in the muddy-brown water that swirled around them. Hotch quickly threw the vehicle into reverse and his heart stilled for a moment as it refused to cooperate. He knew that the water would gather around them as the rain continued to fall in torrents and that they would be washed away into the trees if he didn't get it moving again.

"Relax Hotch," Morgan was watching him, he placed a hand on his arm and both men let out a relieved breath when the vehicle lurched backward. Flooring the pedal, he kept it in reverse, looking in the rearview mirror, though it did him little good in the rain. Water confined them on all sides. Hotch couldn't remember where they had first encountered the flooding and hoped that the SUV wouldn't stall before they made it out of the dangerous current that kept threatening to pull the vehicle off course.

As they sped along in reverse, Hotch opened the window and wrenched around so that he could look behind them. He drove one-handed. Pelted with rain, he wiped at his face. His eyes stung as water dripped into them. The rain seemed to be unnatural, coming from all directions as it hit the water and bounced up into his face.

The wheel jerked sideways in his one-handed grip and he was forced to pull his head back in and place both hands on the wheel to right it. The vehicle swerved dangerously toward the edge of the road and everything seemed to slow down into moments measured by seconds. He pictured the SUV being swept off of the road and into the forest, lodging itself against a tree, and steered into the slide that the vehicle seemed to want to make, trying to right it as one might do on an icy patch of road. Nothing happened. The wheel locked. The tires slid further toward the bank that would send them headlong into the trees. Easing off the gas, Hotch kept the wheel at its awkward angle, not fighting for control of it anymore. They were coasting backwards now. Hotch wasn't sure how it had happened, maybe the momentum of the vehicle had been aided by the flood waters, but the tires stayed on the road and though they nearly careened into the ditch, they remained on the road as the tires regained their tenuous hold on the asphalt.

Daring to push lightly on the gas pedal, Hotch maneuvered the SUV further onto the safety of the road. His muscles were so taut that they were ready to snap. He ached all over, but they were back on the road and that is all that mattered.

They crept along at a pace that an old lady would have been loath to imitate. It was an eternity before they were out of the grip of the flooded road and back to something that Hotch recognized. He continued in reverse until the tires were no longer covered in water and then executed a careful Y-turn and headed back toward Savannah's. They would have to take shelter there until the storm passed. He would have to take care of Savannah and Morgan the best he could with the first aid supplies they had on hand. He remembered the 'Superman' band aid that Savannah had placed on Reid's hand and absently wondered if it was still there. Where was Superman when you needed him? Wait a minute, he was Superman. God help them all.

"Nice work boss," Morgan smiled briefly before a wince of pain crossed his face, "what you smiling about? We ain't out of the woods yet."

"Nothing," Hotch looked over at Morgan and wished that they had never been called out to Georgia. Parking the SUV once again in Savannah's yard, he took a deep breath before stepping out of the vehicle into the rain.

"No one's here," Cooper called to Burrows from the living room.

"Looks like there was some kind of struggle in the bedroom," Burrows swept the room with a careful eye and noted the blood smeared on the wall. Where was everyone? Just what the hell had happened here?

Burrows joined Cooper in the living room. Scrutinizing that room carefully he came up with nothing out of the ordinary, other than the front door being left wide open in the middle of a rainstorm. The only rooms that looked as though something had gone amiss in were the kitchen and the bedroom. Milk had been spilled in the kitchen, the glass pitcher which had held it had been shattered and the bedroom held evidence of a bloody struggle. The people they were looking for were long gone. He hoped none of them were dead.

"Guess we ought to head back to the station," Burrows' hand flew to grip his gun at the sound of a vehicle approaching. He motioned for Cooper to cover him as he approached the door which still stood wide open. Peering out cautiously, he relaxed his grip on his gun as he saw that it was an SUV. He motioned for Cooper to stand down and headed out the front door toward the parked vehicle as an individual stepped out into the rain.

He approached the vehicle with caution, calling out, "Agent Morgan? Agent Reid? Agent Hotchner?"

Getting no response, he resumed the grip on his revolver, pulling it out of its holster and pointing it ahead of him as he took cover on the front porch.

"This is Officer Burrows! Please identify yourself!" His heart was beating wildly in his chest as he remembered the blood on the bedroom wall. Cooper had taken cover on the other side of Savannah's railing on her porch. He had also drawn his weapon and had it pointed before him.

"Identify yourself!" He called out once again, "Or I'll shoot!" He had never had to shoot anyone in his career, had come close to it once, but had never actually had to pull the trigger. He hoped that he wouldn't have to do so now. Perhaps the rain had made it impossible for the figure standing by the SUV to hear him. He could barely see the man as it was.

The man made no move to identify himself. Burrows watched as he reached into the cab and hesitated a moment before taking a shot in warning. He didn't want to accidentally shoot an FBI agent, but also did not want to be at the mercy of some killer on a rampage. He had no idea whether the man had heard him or not and did not know whether he was reaching into the vehicle for a weapon or an umbrella.

The gunshot sounded unusually loud in his ears and Burrows swallowed against the dryness in his throat as some of the wood of the porch rained down on him. In his haste to fire the shot, he hadn't given much thought as to where he had been shooting; taking care only that he wouldn't accidentally shoot the man he was trying to warn.

Determining that the rain was not going to ease anytime soon, Hotch reached into the cab to help Morgan out of the vehicle when a gunshot rang out causing him to drop to the floor of the SUV. What the hell?

"Was that a gunshot?" Morgan asked.

"Yes, do you think it could be the man who took Reid?" Hotch asked from his uncomfortable position on the floor.

"Did you see Reid's SUV when you pulled in?"

"No."

"Did you see any other vehicles when you pulled in?"

"No."

"Maybe the shooter parked on the other side of the garage," Savannah suggested.

"Great," Hotch raised himself up to a sitting position.

"Sounded kind of like a warning shot," Morgan mused.

"Suppose it could have been. Hold tight, I'm going to go check it out," Hotch tucked his gun into his holster and left the vehicle, hands raised over his head, knowing that if his voice didn't carry through the pounding of the rain at least the universal, 'I surrender', gesture would still be clearly seen.

"He's coming out of the SUV," Cooper said, tension evident in his voice. The hand holding his gun shook.

"Lower your weapon, he has his hands raised," Burrows moved from his cover and lowered his weapon slightly as he watched the figure that approached them slowly. He approached cautiously as well. He was still nervous.

"Agent Morgan?" He called out.

"Agent Reid?" There was a slight shake of the head in response. Burrows was able to make out a shock of dark hair and a standard issue gun holster as both men drew nearer to each other. He lowered his weapon.

"Agent Hotchner?" He tried again and was rewarded with a nod.

"Thank God," Officer Burrows holstered his weapon and grinned in relief, "my name is Officer Burrows. We've been trying to get a hold of you as you hadn't checked in at all and with the storm, we were a bit concerned."

"Do you have any word on Dr. Reid?" Hotch asked hopefully.

"No, sir, we were hoping that he'd be with you," Burrows shook his head, "do you have any idea of what happened here?"

"Dr. Reid and Aiken have both been taken by an armed man according to Agent Morgan. Both he and Savannah have been shot. They need medical attention. The road to the hospital is flooded and," Hotch eyed the officer before him with trepidation, "the other road was blocked by a fallen tree." He pulled his weapon out and trained it on the man before him, "You want to tell me how you were able to make it past that fallen tree?"

"Agent Hotchner, I understand that you have been through a lot today," Burrows held his hands up in a placating manner; "Agent Prentiss and I were on our way to check up on your progress in finding Aiken Randall when we came across the downed tree. We returned to the station to get some help in removing the tree. I and Officer Cooper," he gestured to the porch behind him, "removed a portion of the tree with a chainsaw and drove here to find you. Agent Prentiss was asked to join Agent Rossi at a local gas station where an abandoned SUV was discovered."

Hotch wasn't sure whether to believe the man who stood before him or not, but what he said seemed to make sense. He had no way of checking on what the man had said and would have to take him at his word. He looked carefully at the man who had identified himself as Officer Burrows and noted that the man looked nervous at having a gun pointed at him, but he also looked slightly relieved. He had spoken in a relaxed manner and did not appear to be hiding anything. Hotch lowered his weapon and Burrows let out a relieved breath.

"I have two injured people that need medical attention," Hotch gestured toward the SUV, "we need to get them to the hospital as soon as possible."

Burrows took in the agent's appearance before him and knew the man was running on a sense of responsibility pure adrenaline and had been doing so for quite some time, "Looks like you'll also be needing some medical attention. Cooper!" The younger officer ran over to them.

"You drive the squad car, I'll be joining Agent Hotchner on the way to the clinic. Hospital's too far out. Soon as you can, call in Doc and make sure she's waiting for us there." Cooper headed to the squad car and Burrows stepped toward the SUV, Hotch striding before him.

"With all due respect sir, I think it best that I drive as I know where we're goin' and all," Burrows inclined his head, reaching for the door at the same time as Hotch did. Both men eyed each other, neither backing down.

"Hotch, he's got a point," Morgan said thickly. The man would soon lose consciousness again.

"Fine, but I'm not sitting in the back," Hotch crammed in the front, pushing Morgan closer to Savannah. It would be cramped, but Hotch was determined to make sure that both Morgan and Savannah made it to the clinic safely. It wasn't that he didn't trust Burrows, but he was Superman, it was his duty to take care of them after all.

"Alright," Burrows chuckled as he got into the vehicle and followed the squad car. Truth be told, he was concerned about the safety of all three of them as he took in their sickly pallor. Doc had better be ready for us, he thought grimly, driving toward the clinic as fast as he could. The rain finally seemed to be abating. Was that a rainbow peeking out of the dark cloud overhead? If so, it was only a brief shadow of one, Burrows wasn't about to wait for the pot of gold on the other side as Hotch closed his eyes and slumped down in the seat. Stepping on the gas, he raced toward town, toward the promise of help that awaited them there in the care of Doc's tender hands.