Chapter 2 – Director's Orders
As the Director exited Hotch's office, he turned toward the briefing room, making eye contact with Emily momentarily before continuing down the stairs, through the bullpen, and entering the elevator. Emily thought he looked almost apologetic. What had he just done?
Hotch came out of his office then, straightening his tie, looking irritated. He watched the Director leave before taking a deep, steadying breath and heading for the briefing room.
Everyone was anxious to find out why the Director of the FBI had decided to pay them a visit, and as soon as Hotch was through the door, they started firing their questions at him, one after the other, not giving him enough time to answer any of them.
"Was that the Director?"
"What was he doing here?"
"Why did he want to meet with you instead of Strauss?"
"Is this about the new case?"
"What is the new case?"
"Why didn't we know about the case?"
The only one who didn't speak was Emily. Aaron Hotchner was staring her straight in the eyes, completely ignoring the rest of the team, their questions meaningless at the moment. Both he and Emily knew what this was about, and she knew he was silently asking her something with this look. 'Do you want to tell them or should I?'
Realizing that she was not going to make this any easier by commanding the conversation herself, and that the rest of the team was still waiting expectantly for answers to their questions, Hotch looked away from Emily and toward the rest of the team.
"Yes, that was Director Trent coming out of my office," he began, noticing a slight flicker of recognition at the name in Morgan's eyes, "We have a new case. Really, it's a new assignment. It is different than what we are usually asked to do, and ordinarily I would have suggested a different team for the task, but the Director was quite insistent." And he knew exactly why. This was Emily's team. No one else would do.
Morgan had not realized that the Director's last name was Trent. Or rather he had forgotten. Obviously as a senior agent with the Bureau, he had seen and heard the name before, but it had never stood out to him as significant or memorable until now.
Prentiss-Trent Family Reunion? That was what the invitation had said, wasn't it? Was Emily related to the Director of the FBI somehow? How could that have not come up in conversation? He put his questions aside for a moment, looking at Hotch and asking one that wouldn't arouse too much suspicion, "What is this new assignment?"
"Event security," Hotch answered, again giving Emily a pointed look, "Threat assessment, and protection detail." She just huffed, angry, and said nothing.
Rossi noticed he was being very vague and that he had yet to hand out the files in his hands, though they clearly pertained to what the team was now discussing.
Event security? What event? When? Where?
Threat assessment? Of whom? Why?
Protection detail? Again, who? And from whom?
He was irritated with this dance. He just wanted to know what was going on. "You're right," he said instead, hiding his frustration, "That is far from our usual job description. It must be one hell of an event to warrant FBI security."
Hotch knew Rossi well enough to realize he was upset, even if he was trying to cover it. And he also knew that his comment was meant to prod him into elaborating, something they both knew he needed to do right now. But it just felt so wrong. This was Emily's family, and she clearly did not want any of them to know about any of it. He felt like he was betraying her with every word, but it was still his job, and she wasn't exactly helping him out here. "It is. It is being hosted at the White House. The President and his family will be in attendance, along with many other high-value targets."
"I'm assuming Director Trent will be there as well?" Morgan asked. If he really was related to Emily maybe this was just a matter of who he trusted to watch his back, and had nothing to do with the reunion. Or maybe this was the Director's way of helping Emily get out of going to the reunion. Or maybe the event in the White House actually was the reunion… No, that couldn't be. Either way, he wanted to steer the conversation back to the Director so he could find out exactly who this guy was to her.
"Yes, Director Trent will be there," Hotch answered, once again glancing at Emily. Come on Em, jump in any time here. "But the Director has his own security detail, as do most of the other guests."
Emily did not like where this was going. She had kept silent the entire time Hotch had been explaining, despite knowing he clearly wanted her to say something. But this was not going to end well if it kept on this way. Please just let this be a bad dream, and I am about to wake up at home, she silently prayed.
No such luck…
"Who will we be protecting then?" Reid asked, genuinely curious. His mind was trying to piece together what was going on, but he felt like he was missing a vital piece of information.
Hotch looks at Emily pointedly as he answers the question, "His niece, who has apparently refused a personal security detail."
That's it, the breaking point. Emily is done with this. She doesn't even care if the rest of the team know. After all, they were bound to find out at some point. She just can't stay silent any longer. "I can take care of myself, sir," she begins quietly, but allows her irritation to seep into her voice as she spits the sir at him, "Besides I have no need for protection, because I WILL NOT BE THERE!"
The confused silence that followed was maddening. Everyone was looking around at each other, trying to wrap their heads around what was going on. Finally, JJ broke the silence, asking for the clarification that they all needed, "Wait. Emily, you're the Director's niece?"
And it was like a damn broke. Suddenly all of the questions were bubbling to the surface and before Emily could say anything at all, the team was firing them one after another.
"This is about the family reunion, isn't it? Director Trent wants us to protect you at the Prentiss-Trent family reunion?" Morgan asked, finally filling the rest in on this piece of information.
"Prentiss-Trent reunion?" Reid continued, "So the Director is a relative of your father's? His brother?"
Penelope was the only one in the room truly excited, "Oh yes, we finally get to meet Emily's mysterious family! Yay!" She clapped her hands together, completely oblivious to the discomfort permeating the entire room.
"No, you won't," Emily bit back angrily. She wasn't really upset with Garcia, or even with Hotch. She was just angry at the whole situation. And with her mother, who had clearly had a hand in this, "Because I'M NOT GOING!"
Garcia looked entirely dejected, finally catching up to the emotions in the room, but before she could vocalize any such upset, Hotch cut in. He addressed Emily, and he sounded very much like the Boss Man in that moment, "I'm afraid you are Prentiss. Director's orders."
That was when he finally started handing out the thick case files in his hands, and as the profilers flipped them open they saw the order clearly displayed right on top.
Emily was absolutely livid, "Jeremy wouldn't dare," she began, closing her eyes, thinking hard.
She had spent a lifetime distancing herself from these people, her family. The words pained her, even to think them. She wanted nothing to do with any of them, and aside from the very limited interactions with her mother her job required once or twice, she had completely cut herself off. She had her reasons, and none of them were anyone's business. She would not explain herself.
There had only been one condition when Jeremy had offered her this position, that their familial relation would never be exposed or used to influence her career in any way. And yet, here he was, ordering her to attend a damned family reunion, and involving her team as well. It was too much. It was so wrong.
Her eyes were still closed tightly, her head bowed in frustration, and no one had spoken. The silence was stretching on, painfully, and she hoped someone would break it before she said what she needed to say now. Because they were NOT going to like what came next.
If Jeremy couldn't respect their agreement, if he was determined to use his position of authority over her to interfere in her personal and professional life, then she would have to cut ties with him as well. She would quit the BAU, and the FBI right here, right now, if it meant avoiding this order. The team wouldn't understand, and she would miss them terribly, but she could not do this.
As she opened her eyes, slowly raised her head, eyes glistening with unshed tears, and looked at Hotch, she slowly reached for her badge and gun, ready to hand them over and leave. But before she had even pulled her badge from her jacket, Hotch spoke, seeming to read her mind, "And before you think about quitting to get out of this, you should know it wouldn't make a damned bit of difference."
Morgan scoffed at Hotch's statement. Emily would never quit her job, no matter how much drama there was with her family. The BAU team was her real family, and she would never leave them over something like this. Or so he thought. He saw her hands, one resting on her gun, the other stopped halfway to her jacket, as if reaching for her badge. Had she really been about to hand them in?
The rest of the team were having similar thoughts, and all of them were surprised and mildly horrified when her next words confirmed what she had in fact been about to do.
"And why exactly is that Hotch?" she inquired, still agitated, "As my Director, he can order me to go, but as my uncle, he holds no such power. So if I am no longer an agent, how could Jeremy possibly get me to attend?"
Her tone was sarcastic, almost flippant. She would never have used such a tone with Hotch about anything else, but her family, and the possibility of leaving a job and a team she genuinely loved, were bringing the worst out in her right now.
Seeing this sort of a reaction from her had everyone wondering what was really going on with her and her family. She had never even mentioned anyone other than her mother. They all assumed her dad wasn't in the picture, but clearly she at least knew who he was since her uncle was involved. Did she have siblings? Cousins? Other aunts and uncles? Why would she keep an entire family hidden from them? And why was she so hell-bent on avoiding a chance to see them?
"Director Trent has secured a Presidential Order," Hotch stated simply, cutting off their internal questioning, and causing every jaw in the room to drop, including Emily's.
She could not believe that. It was absolutely unthinkable. "He got Michael involved? Are you kidding me?!" She was going to kill Jeremy! How could he put her in this position?
Morgan's thoughts were racing at this point. The Director the FBI was Emily's uncle. He was using his command to influence his niece into seeing their family. He was ordering her to go, even though she clearly didn't want to. And now he had somehow involved the President of the United States? Michael Clemmons, that was his name. Everyone knew it, but the way she referred to him as Michael, like she knew him, it was almost as surprising as the way she had spoken about Jeremy.
That's when the puzzle pieces started to fit together. The phone call, which he was now quite certain had been from her mother, Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss, had been a first attempt to get Emily to agree to going. He had heard her mention a Jeremy and a Michael while on the phone. She knew this was coming, but she hadn't thought her mother would actually be able to pull it off. And now, she was boxed in a corner.
But how did she know the President? Was he also family? No, last name was Clemmons, so that wouldn't make sense, would it?
Rossi was the one to say what they were all thinking then, "Emily, since when are you on a first name basis with the President of the United States?"
At this she blushed. She hadn't realized she had used his first name until that moment. She was so upset she hadn't thought what that would sound like to them. And she hadn't been planning on telling them anything about this. But now she had to.
She guessed, if she was really going to be helping them do threat assessments for the reunion, she was going to have to tell them everything she knew about everyone who was going to be in attendance anyway, but this still sucked.
She cleared her throat and answered Rossi's question, "Michael Clemmons is family. His wife, the First Lady, Amanda Clemmons, was formerly Amanda Prentiss, my aunt."