This is the single longest chapter I have ever written! Normally, the chapters average like 6-8 word pages (double spaced) this one is almost 22! This is gonna be the last chapter before I do the time jump, and then I think there will be like 6ish chapters after that. We're winding down, but I have plans for a sequel:) Thank you for all your feedback so far, it means a lot, hope you continue to enjoy!
JJ woke up extremely comfortable. For a second, she couldn't quite remember where she was. Hearing a sigh and feeling someone shift underneath her made her pause. This was unfamiliar territory, JJ never slept with anyone. Even when she had been in a 'relationship' in college (if she could really call it that) she had almost always made some excuse. Then she remembered, she was at Emily's. Quickly looking up to check on the brunette, she shifted her body so she was no longer half on top of her. Emily barely moved. JJ smiled, she needed her sleep, thankfully, she didn't have a concussion; but she had one hell of a cut and a nasty bruise forming around it. JJ quietly slid herself off of the bed, trying not to wake Emily, gathered her clothes, and tip toped downstairs. It was 8:06, Hotch had given them the morning off, no one had to be in until noon. After changing back into her clothes from the night before, JJ went about making herself some coffee.
As the coffee brewed, JJ made herself some peanut butter toast and explored Emily's apartment a little. She didn't have many pictures of herself with friends or family that JJ could see. When she found one with Reid, Garcia, Morgan, Emily and herself all grinning at a bar, JJ smiled. She had the same photograph at her apartment. Morgan was giving Reid bunny ears while Garcia was yelling at him to leave Reid alone, Emily and JJ were staring at each other, both laughing. Not one of them was actually facing the camera.
After pouring herself a mug of coffee, JJ looked around at Emily's bookshelf, she knew that the brunette liked Kurt Vonnegut, but she was clearly an avid reader. Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Tim Sandlin, some crime novels, all the Harry Potter books, what looked like a lot of first edition children's books. It was impressive. JJ didn't want to invade Emily's privacy too much, so she headed back upstairs. Emily was still asleep. JJ gave her a soft smile and then headed back downstairs, rinsed her cup and left the apartment. As she was walking to her car, she dialed Garcia.
"I'm freaking out and I need you to calm me down." She said as soon as she jammed her eyes into the ignition.
"Wha..." A sleepy voice mumbled. "Jayje? Is...wha...what time is it?"
"That is not important! Garcia, help me!"
JJ heard shuffling around on the other side of the phone. She hit the speaker phone button and dropped the phone into her lap so she could drive. "Okay, umm...ouch, fuck!"
"Garcia!"
"I'm trying to find my glasses! Hang on!" JJ heard a lot more shuffling and banging around before her friend finally seemed to be making coherent sentences. "Okay, why are you freaking out?"
"I slept with Emily."
"WHAT!" Garcia screamed. Thank god JJ had put the phone in her lap, or else that may have broken her ear drums.
"Slept, not sex, slept, way worse."
"How is that worse?"
"Garcia!"
"Oh right, you never let them stay over, what's with that anyway?"
"Can you just focus please?"
"Okay, what happened?"
"I went over there to force her to talk to me, she was still hurt, she's so damn stubborn and she didn't take her pills and we talked. We were both exhausted and she didn't want to be alone and...well neither did I, but..."
"Jayje, I've been telling you since Emily came here, she's special, you like her, you probably love her and if you weren't so thickheaded you would just enjoy it and be happy."
JJ sighed. "This is not what I wanted you to say."
"Well tough, I love you Gumdrop, but you can be an idiot sometimes."
"Garcia!"
"Jayje, its really simple, do you love her?" Garcia asked with a soft voice. JJ paused. She didn't actually know how to respond to that. "Don't think about it Jayje, just answer the question."
"Garcia, I don't know."
"What's your favorite color?"
"Huh?" JJ asked, confused.
"Answer the question, what's your favorite color?"
"Blue."
"Favorite ice cream flavor?"
"Mint chocolate chip."
"Favorite food?"
"Pizza."
"Mother's name?"
"Garcia..."
"Mother's name?"
"Mary."
"What's Reid's favorite show?"
"Doctor Who."
"Do you love Emily?"
"Yes." JJ froze. She hadn't even realized she answered that. Garcia was squealing on the other end of the line. "You sly little..." JJ said through gritted teeth.
"YOU LOVE HER!" Garcia yelled in excitement. "I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT!"
"I hate you." JJ growled as she pulled up to her apartment.
"Oh you do not, now that that matter is settled, I have a few more hours of sleep to catch up on, go cuddle with your girl."
"I left."
"What!"
"I freaked out, I left."
"Jennifer Jareau!"
"I wrote her a note and made coffee."
"Well, that's something. Jayje...you gotta stop being scared, I know commitment freaks you out, but seriously? I've never seen you happier than when your with Emily, or thinking about Emily, so just freaking be happy and let me get some sleep."
JJ sighed. "Bye Garcia."
"Night Jayje."
JJ hung up the phone and went into her apartment. Dropping her keys on her table, she went upstairs to shower. She loved Emily. Sneaky little Garcia. God, what was she going to do? What if Emily didn't feel that way yet? Fuck. JJ thought. I'm screwed. She was not going to tell Emily how she felt, not until she knew she felt the same, or at least not until they went on another date. JJ climbed out of the shower and got dressed. She still had a few hours before she needed to head into work. Trying to focus on anything other than what she felt about Emily, JJ decided to search through her files, maybe find a case before heading into work.
Emily woke up alone. Frowning, she rolled over and groaned at the pain in her head. She sat up and caught sight of a coffee mug and a note on her bedside table. Emily reached out and picked up the coffee, it was cold. Turning to see what time it was, Emily realized she only had about an hour to get ready and get into work. Shit. She thought as she sat up further. Grabbing the note, she read it as she downed the cold coffee. She wouldn't have time to make more anyway.
Em,
You need to change that bandage again. I made you coffee. You still owe me a date, I'll see you at work.
JJ.
Emily smiled, set the note down and went to jump in the shower. Changing her bandage proved to be slightly more difficult than she anticipated. She winced as she pulled it off in one quick move. The cut was no longer bleeding, but the bruise around it was disgusting and extremely painful. Emily quickly just placed on a new gauze pad and ran out to her car. Driving much faster than she probably should, she got to the bureau in record time.
"Ouch, Prentiss, that looks nasty." Morgan said as he caught sight of her bruise.
"It's fine."
"It looks like a five year old taped you up."
"Shut up."
"Hey." A gentle voice said. Emily grinned as she turned around and met JJ's eyes. The blonde's smile faltered and then looked amused as she noticed Emily's head. "You are never going to have a career in the medical field." She said, putting her hands on her hips.
"Oh damn, I wanted it so bad." Emily answered her with a laugh.
"Come on, I'll fix it." JJ said. Emily followed JJ up to her office and let her fix the gauze. "God Em, this looks awful."
"Gee, you sure know how to make a girl feel special." Emily said sarcastically. JJ chuckled. "Thanks." Emily said sincerely.
"For what?"
"Staying last night."
Emily caught the panicked look on JJ's face, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. "No problem." The blonde said with a smile. "You still owe me a date though, that doesn't count."
Emily laughed. "No, I hadn't meant for it to. Are you free tonight?"
JJ beamed. "I think I can pencil you in."
"Good."
JJ couldn't help but grin as she walked into her office. She and Emily had another fantastic date the night before. They had been eating together almost every night that week, but nothing fancy. Emily had surprised her and taken them out to a dinner theater show, which JJ ended up loving. Ever since their second date, things had been going wonderfully; both in and outside of work.
"You got laid." Garcia said frankly as she walked by JJ.
"What!" JJ yelped.
"You've got that, 'I got some' last night glow."
"Garcia..." JJ looked around to see if anyone was listening in, her office door was wide open and Garcia's voice traveled.
"Well?"
"I am not talking about this with you."
"Oh, come on, I'm single, I need to live vicariously through you."
"No. We have a case, come on."
"Jayje, give me something here."
JJ gathered up her files and frowned at Garcia. As she walked past her bubbly blonde friend she paused. "Emily Prentiss is a woman with many talents." She whispered in Garcia's ear. "And we have a case." And then headed out to the conference room, leaving a grinning Garcia behind her.
"The Halpert family." JJ began, flicking through the photos on the computer. "They were murdered in their home last night, in the Denver suburb of Cherry Creek. Its the third home invasion of this type in the last month."
"They kill everyone?" Hotch asked.
"Parents, kids, pets if they have them. Always families, nice neighborhoods."
"What do they take?" Morgan asked.
"Nothing that can't fit in their pockets, cash, jewelry..." JJ trailed off.
"There's hundreds of ways to get cash and jewels without killing entire families." Hotch stated. JJ, and everyone else agreed with him. While Morgan and Reid discussed the uptake in home invasions JJ kept her eyes on her files. "You know it's bad if they're asking us back." Hotch said, catching JJ's attention.
"Back?" She asked.
"Things went bad after the JonBenet Ramsey case when a couple of agents publicly criticized local detectives." Hotch explained.
"They didn't need us to make them look bad." Morgan stated.
"And that was in Boulder?" JJ asked.
"Yeah, but the state wide media ran with it and it took on a life of its own." Hotch said with a grim face.
"Well I talked to a Lieutenant Nellis, trust me they want out help." JJ stressed.
"They need it." Emily spoke up for the first time. JJ glanced over at her in question. "The first two invasions were twenty days apart, this last one was just nine days later." Emily explained.
"So they're killing in faster cycles, acquiring a taste." Morgan said, agreeing with Emily.
"And getting better at it every time." Hotch said. JJ glanced at the photos again and met Emily's eye. The ones with kids always sucked the worst. Giving her a small nod, she went to gather her things and follow Emily to the jet, linking their hands together with a small smile.
Emily followed Hotch into the crime scene as soon as they had settled in.
"No sign of forced entry." The detective said as they walked them through the house.
"Same as the other two houses right?" Emily asked him. He nodded. Emily moved over to Hotch, who was standing by the open front door.
"So its late and the doorbell rings, I come over and I flip the switch..." Hotch tried, but the light didn't turn on. Confused, he stepped out and twisted the bulb with a cloth and it turned on.
"They made it dark. No one sees anything if they're walking by." Emily said. Hotch walked back inside and closed the door.
"But I can still see through the peephole." Shutting the door and peering through, he could still see outside. "If you look like trouble I might not let you in, but if you look non threatening, maybe I open up."
"So the occupants either knew them or they lied their way in." Emily said, thinking out loud.
Hotch nodded. "With this kind of overkill there is usually a history."
"Right." Emily agreed as they walked over to the still bloody couches. "If it was just about eliminating witnesses, they never would have been so vicious." Looking down at the couch she grimaced, her eyes immediately replacing the empty spaces with the bludgeoned bodies from the photographs. "This is rage."
"You think they knew the family?" The detective asked her.
"Its possible."
"And then there's the kids, tucked in, quiet, orderly, controlled..." Hotch trailed off.
"Speaks to an introvert, with some capacity for remorse." Emily said, going off Hotch's ideas. "Two profiles." She looked to Hotch.
"Two unsubs." He agreed with her. Looking to the detective, he asked, "have these chairs been moved?"
"No, its all how we found it."
Emily watched as Hotch walked over to the two chairs sitting side by side in the living room. Clearly out of place, looking around they seemed to belong at the diner table. "So they've been positioned to face the area where the parents were killed. Every thing's been cleared out like a stage." Hotch stated.
Realizing what he was getting at, Emily couldn't help but feel slightly sick. "It's entertainment. They sit and watch the parents die." Emily had a feeling this case was not going to have a good ending.
Back at the police station they conversed with Garcia, realizing the unsubs had jammed the phone lines. There was nothing to connect the families; different social status, different schools, etc. They seemed to be picking their victims at random. Emily sighed in frustration and looked over at JJ, who gave her a smile. They were sitting next to each other, and Emily felt JJ reach out under the table and give her hand a small squeeze. Gratefully, Emily smiled back.
The other officers gathered around as the team gave them the profile. "We're looking for two men, probably white given the neighborhoods that they've hit. Mid to late twenties, intelligent and organized." Hotch began.
"These are career criminals, one or both has done hard time but neither presents as so. They would appear clean shaven, well dressed..." Morgan went on.
"Neighborly." Emily added for him. "This helps them talk their way into the homes, they may also be using a ruse."
"What kind of ruse?" A detective asked.
"Giving that the invasions take place in the evening, it could be anything, door to door sales, person in distress, car trouble..." Hotch said.
"Uh, Derek Todd Lee, used a tape of a baby crying to get women to open their doors in Baton Rouge, never underestimate their creativity." Reid explained.
"These men share a very tight bond, and a mutual compulsion to kill, but their signatures reveal two very distinct personalities." Emily spoke up.
"One brutalizes the parents, this is the dominant one, sadistic, remorseless, extremely volatile." Hotch said.
"The other prefers a needle. His injections are consistent with an angel of death, he's more withdrawn, sensitive and he has a warped sense of mercy." Emily added.
"Agent Morgan is passing out a list of places he might have access to the drugs he uses, its long but..."
JJ ran in next to Emily, interrupting Hotch. "Hotch, there's been another one and they're sending an ambulance." She said in slight distress.
Emily turned to her and instinctively stuck her hands out towards JJ before pulling them back. "An ambulance?" She asked. JJ looked to her and nodded. "There's a survivor." Emily shared a look with JJ as Hotch told them to go talk to the girl.
JJ and Emily followed the doctor as he explained how lucky Carrie was to be alive. The injection had missed her vein.
"That's a first." Emily said as they walked, JJ slightly behind the two of them. "This guy doesn't miss."
"Like I said, she's lucky." The doctor stated again.
"Is she conscious?" JJ asked.
"She's in and out, keep in mind she's suffering the effects of an acute barbiturate overdose, she's drowsy, confused."
"Given what's happened, that's probably best." Emily stated with a grimace. JJ couldn't help but agree with her girlfriend. She couldn't imagine being sixteen and watching her entire family be killed right in front of her. JJ took a deep breath before she and Emily entered the hospital room. She was not looking forward to this at all. JJ introduced them and went to go sit in the empty chair beside the bed while Emily remained standing. They listened as the girl told them what had happened.
"I went to get a bag, and when I got back there were two of them." She practically whispered.
"What did the other one look like?" Emily asked her gently.
"Heavier, hispanic, quiet, he never looked straight ahead."
"What do you mean?" JJ asked in a soft voice.
"Like...a few times I felt him staring at me, when I looked at him he always looked away."
JJ glanced up to Emily as she spoke. "Avoiding eye contact?"
The girl only nodded and continued. "Then my dad came in from the study and they...jumped him. They made Danny call for my mom, then they tied them up. And...and then one of them went over and got the thing from the fireplace and started hitting them with it...They made us watch." Seeing that she was getting upset – as was Emily – JJ leaned over and gently spoke to the girl. "Okay you know what we can take a break now..." She started to get up but the girl cut her off.
"No! You need this right?" She asked, her eyes full of tears. JJ could only nod because the truth was they did need this information. JJ just wished they didn't have to make her relive everything to get it. JJ sat back down as Carrie finished. "After a while, the quiet one took Danny away, and the other one just started going through drawers looking for stuff. Then I ran."
JJ and Emily said goodbye to Carrie and headed out of the hospital. "God, that poor girl." Emily stated with a groan as they walked out. JJ noticed that Emily had been upset as Carrie spoke. She reached out and took her hand, giving her back a rub. They got into the car and headed back to the station, they needed to find these men and fast.
The next morning, JJ and Emily went to the station together after a sleepless night. Cases always made for little sleep and JJ snatched up some coffee the second she could. Making a cup for Emily and bringing it with her as the team met. JJ mentioned that Carrie had said that the two men referred to each other as brothers; and Emily reminded them that the hispanic one didn't speak spanish. The team concluded that they may have been adopted. JJ watched as Emily grimaced at the thought of releasing the information that Carrie survived. She could tell that this case was taking more of a toll on Emily than usual. She had to admit, she would be very happy when it was over with.
Emily stood in the hospital waiting for JJ to return. She had gone to get some clothes for Carrie and Emily felt better with the extra security Hotch had allowed for her. Something about this case was getting to her. Glancing up, she saw JJ tiredly heading over to her, a pink duffle bag slung over one shoulder. Emily smiled at the sight. Maybe it was hard to have relationships in their line of work, but having JJ there made her feel better and even tired, god was she beautiful. The blonde gave her a tight smile and a tiny wave.
"Hey, so Carrie's been cleared to go." Emily told her. She watched as JJ's face fell a little.
"Well, I wish she had somewhere to go." She answered with a frown.
"Ughh, no luck with the LA thing?" Emily asked angrily. JJ shook her head. "Can't this girl catch a break?" She stated as they slowly headed up to Carrie's room. JJ looked just as upset at the situation as Emily was. Hearing Carrie scream, Emily and JJ looked at each other briefly, then took off running. JJ was faster, she dropped the bag and ran to comfort the girl. Emily went to the other side of the bed and watched as JJ took Carrie in her arms and calmed her down.
"It was just a dream." JJ said as she held Carrie and looked at Emily.
"I'm okay." Carrie mumbled a minute later, JJ released her, but stayed close. Unsure and feeling awkward, Emily said the only thing she could think off.
"We uh...we brought you a change of clothes."
"I didn't know what to grab you, so I just got three of every thing." JJ said, giving Carrie a light laugh. While JJ stayed bent down near Carrie, Emily stood up and glanced around the room. There were flowers everywhere.
"Looks like a flower shop in here." She stated.
"Yeah they umm...they all started coming in after the news broadcast." Carrie answered her. Emily stared as she recognized some of the flowers from the crime scene. Giving JJ a look, they said goodbye to Carrie and headed out to inform the team.
"The exact same floral arrangement was in the Ortiz living room." She told Hotch after they had retuned to the police station.
"Could be a coincidence." He said.
"Or the sender was in the house, associated it with her?"
"No note?" He asked.
"No, just a blank card from the floral shop." Emily said.
"Get Garcia to track the delivery and Reid's got something for us when your done." He said as he left the room.
Emily pulled out her phone and dialed Garcia's number. "Hey Garcia it's Em..."
"Why cats?" She asked, cutting her off slightly.
"Sorry?"
"Evil has no boundaries!"
"Well, for what its worth I think they go peacefully?" Emily said with a wince. Garcia didn't really seem all that cheered up or comforted.
"Ughh, how do we catch these guys?" She asked.
"Back trace a flower delivery for me?" Emily could already hear Garcia typing away as she spoke.
"So, I heard you are a woman of many talents." Garcia said in a coy voice.
"What!" Emily asked. "Garcia, I don't..."
"Don't you play dumb with me. JJ had a glow yesterday and so did you, you two have consummated this wonderful relationship of yours haven't you!"
Shocked and embarrassed Emily fiddled with her pen. "Garcia, I don't kiss and tell."
"You and JJ are both no fun." Garcia pouted.
"She said I had many talents?" Emily asked, somewhat amused and proud, also slightly mortified.
"Yes she did. She seemed quite happy about it."
"Okay, focus Garcia, flowers, cats being killed, murders to solve."
"Eww, ruin my day why don't you!"
Emily laughed. "Sorry."
"No you're not! Okay, I got your guy, paid with a credit card, name is Ron Surano."
"Thanks! Bye Garcia."
"Adios."
Emily looked up as JJ brought Carrie into the police station. They had found the Surano family murdered once they got there. Luckily, Garcia had been able to pull nine names of foster kids who had done time and had access to small animals and the drug. Carrie was coming in to look at them. Emily stood next to her as she pointed to one picture.
"Kay, that's eh uh, Ervin Ropeless." Morgan said reading off the list.
Emily noticed Carrie tearing up as she grabbed her coat. Placing a hand on her shoulder, she leaned in. "Your parents would be really proud of you." She said with a smile.
"It's too late to be a good daughter now." She said, not looking Emily in the eye.
Horrified, Emily leaned in closer. "Oh that's not true." She tried to reassure the girl.
"I was horrible to them, and now they're gone." Emily didn't know what to say. "Why did they do it?" Carrie asked her. "I mean there has to be a reason right?"
"Oh, you'll drive yourself crazy trying to figure out the reason."
"I go crazy every time I close my eyes."
"It may have something to do with what happened to them when they were younger." Emily explained to her.
"What like, they were abused or something?"
"There's a good chance."
"Are there any happy families?" Carrie asked her in a small voice. Emily didn't have an answer for her. If she was honest, she didn't know any, hers certainly hadn't be idilic. Looking up, she saw JJ watching the two of them. She didn't know how long the blonde had been there, but from the look on her face, she probably heard the entire conversation. Rubbing Carrie's back, Emily gave her a soft smile before she left to go with Hotch to try and find Ervin. She wished she could give Carrie a better answer than that.
His apartment had been empty and he was off work for the weekend. After asking his manager to call and have him come in, they went to his old foster home.
"My God! Ervin? I mean he had behavioral problems, they all do, but nothing we couldn't handle." His foster mom stated.
"And he hasn't been acting alone, he's got a partner." Hotch told her.
"Perhaps someone else who grew up in your care?" Emily asked. She noticed a young boy walk into the kitchen quietly and stand by the fridge.
"Tyler!" The woman chided. "The adults are talking here."
"I just want some milk." The boy said quietly. Emily and Hotch looked over and saw locks on the refrigerator. Shocked, Emily shared a look with Hotch. "Can you open the fridge?" He asked.
"You know the rules." She answered him. That's when Emily noticed the key hanging around the woman's neck. The boy walked out of the room, dejected. "They'll eat you out of house and home if you let them." She said to Emily and Hotch with a small laugh. Emily licked her lip and mashed them together to stop herself from yelling at the woman.
"Is there anyone Ervin was especially close to?" She asked.
"Someone he would have looked up to, someone who would have protected him?" Hotch asked, his face remaining stoic. The woman seemed to remember something.
"Gary." She said. She lead them over to a wall of photos and took one down. "We tried with him, but he tested us."
"Have you kept in touch with him?" Hotch asked.
"Oh god no. Gary left the day he turned eighteen, he never looked back. Ervin was a mess when he got here, been separated from a younger sister."
"Where did she go?" Emily asked.
"Nobody told me, siblings get separated all the time." She said nonchalantly. "But, they find new ones here."
"Like Ervin and Gary?" Hotch asked. The woman nodded. She told them that the girls name had been Lucy, the same thing Carrie had said he called her. Hotch answered his cell phone and Morgan told them they had Ervin in custody. Emily and Hotch headed back to the police station. Ervin wasn't talking to anyone. Without him, they had no way of finding Gary. Emily reminded them that kids who grow up like Ervin are incapable or forming attachments, they weren't going to have any luck getting his trust. Emily had an idea, and she hated it.
JJ walked along with Emily as Hotch explained to Carrie what was going on. This was a horrible idea.
"Remember he'll be in handcuffs you'll have nothing to worry about." He said as Carrie nodded.
"And I will be in there with you." Emily told her.
"Okay."
JJ sighed. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to Carrie." She stressed.
"I do." She said, nodding.
"Remember we're interested in Gary, where he is, his next move..." Hotch told her. JJ bit her bottom lip in frustration.
"I will keep him on point about that Carrie, just try your best to keep him engaged." Emily told her. JJ stood between them with her hands on her hips angrily. The second Hotch led Carrie away, she grabbed Emily's arm and stopped her.
"Okay, I'm sorry, can we just stop and think about this for a minute?" She asked her girlfriend angrily. She knew this had been Emily's idea and she couldn't fathom why. Emily reached out and rubbed JJ's arm in an attempt to calm her down, but it didn't make her feel any better.
"I'm sure she'll be okay." Emily said.
"She's a kid! What is she trying to prove here?"
JJ watched as Emily's face fell a little. "That she can be a good daughter." She said in a soft voice. JJ felt her face soften a little. She had heard the entire conversation Carrie and Emily had had earlier and she understood. She still hated it, but she understood.
JJ watched with Hotch, Morgan and the detective from behind the mirror. Her arms crossed and her focus shifting from Emily, to Carrie and then back again. As Carrie began to grow more angry and distressed, JJ bit her lip and shifted her weight. Sometimes, she really hated being the one who watched. Emily tried to get control over Carrie, but the girl yelled out at Ervin.
"What happened to you that was so bad?" She asked. JJ watched as Emily grabbed Carrie's hand and the girl listened to Ervin.
"She used to make it go dark. That's what we called it. She would put me in the bath...to pray, and then she'd hold my head down under the water. Sometimes I could stay awake...for like a minute, sometimes a little more. But then it would all go dark." JJ watched on horrified as Ervin cried.
"They've still got kids in that house." Morgan stated angrily.
"Let's call DCFS see if we can get them out." Hotch told him.
JJ watched as Carrie leaned forward and took one of Ervin's hands. "What is she doing?" She asked Hotch worriedly. Emily almost reached forward to stop her, but it seemed to have the desired effect.
"She can't hurt you anymore." Carrie whispered to him.
"I wanted to stop!" Ervin said to Emily. "But Gary, he...he went through it way, way worse when we were kids and he...he never got the chance to fight back."
"So he fought those other families?" Emily asked.
Ervin nodded, still holding Carrie's hand. "Only because I wouldn't go back."
"Back?" Emily asked. JJ could see the wheels turning in her mind. "Gary's going back to your foster home isn't he?" She asked. Ervin nodded and Carrie immediately retracted her hand. Emily looked back at the mirror and JJ and Morgan both moved quickly as Hotch told them to get him out of there. Carrie began crying and Emily wrapped her up in a hug, rubbing her hair and telling her she did a good job. JJ pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. Thankfully, this was almost over.
Emily and Hotch had gone to the school, Gary had taken the kids almost twenty minutes ago. Reid called and told him that they found Gary and the boy in a diner. They quickly headed over there as Reid told them she gave him a note saying he will kill the boy. JJ waited scared and confused as Gary released Tyler and walked out of the diner, giving himself up.
Emily waited by the car with the two kids as Morgan talked angrily to social services. She grew just as angry as he told her that they had to take the kids home. Social services had to hold a full investigation before they could remove them. Emily wanted to punch something, these kids were being abused and they had to go back to it.
"This sucks." She said as the kids walked into the house. Morgan's phone rang just as they were putting on their seat belts.
"Backpacks? No why? Why would we search the backpacks?" Morgan asked as they heard two gunshots go off in the house. Shocked and full of adrenaline, Emily and Morgan bolted into the house, guns drawn. "Tyler!" He yelled. "Drop that gun!" Emily looked around quickly and saw the foster mother on the ground.
"Are you hurt?" She asked, secretly hoping she a least had a cut or something for all she'd done to these kids.
"No." She said, cowering on the floor. Emily looked up at the wall of photos, there were bullet holes through some of them.
"They're lies." Tyler said quietly.
"I know." Morgan said. "But you could have come in here, and you could have made her pay, and you didn't because you're good. You're not Gary. You're nothing like him." Morgan held his hands up and holstered his gun, much to Emily's horror. She hated being the only one with a gun on Tyler. If he made a move toward Morgan, she would have to shot a child. She did not want that responsibility on her shoulders. "Let's make a deal, you give me that gun, and I promise you I will walk you out of here and you will never have to come back. Sound pretty good?" Tyler was crying and nodded. Morgan walked forward slowly and took the gun. Emily quickly grabbed it from him as he wrapped Tyler up into a hug. Shaking, she walked outside.
As she and Hotch gathered up the last remaining files from the case, Emily spoke what she had been thinking secretly for almost two days now. "I could take her." She said, somewhat shyly.
"Take her?" He asked confused.
"Carrie, to DC." She said with a smile.
"You mean to live with you?"
"Yeah."
"Why would you want to do that?"
"Well, I have room, money and you know she's smart, two, three years, she goes to college!" Emily said somewhat excitedly. Truthfully, she had been thinking about all sorts of things they could do. She could show Carrie that their could be happy families.
"Prentiss." He said in a tight voice. "This is the job, and I need to know that you can be objective."
Emily's face faltered slightly. She paused before answering him, a little more angrily than she intended. "And I need to know that I can be human." She wasn't about to let this job compromise who she was.
Hotch hesitated a moment and Emily duck her head down, stacking files. "JJ heard back from the family and they're on their way from LA." He said softly.
Emily felt her face drop. "Oh." She looked down and tried to collect herself. Giving a soft – very unconvincing – laugh she tried not to appear disappointed. "That's...that's great." Emily refused to look Hotch in the eye as they finished collecting their things and headed out to the jet. Emily just prayed he wouldn't tell anyone, least of all JJ.
"Please tell me they stocked the bar." Morgan said as he and JJ boarded the jet after Reid. Hotch was sitting in a corner on the phone, JJ gave him a small nod of thanks and walked forward.
"I called ahead" She said with a smile to Morgan. Seeing Emily sitting alone staring out the window, JJ headed straight for her. Hotch had mentioned their conversation earlier, but JJ had already picked up on what Emily was feeling long before. Sliding coyly into the seat across from Emily, she was greeted with a tiny smile. Emily wouldn't meet her eyes, JJ leaned back against the window and propped her legs up. "You okay?" She asked gently.
Emily looked up like she was caught daydreaming. "Yeah." She answered, rather unconvincingly. JJ nodded and kept a soft smile on her face. Emily almost immediately turned her attention to back out the window as JJ watched her.
"They're good people, Carrie's family." JJ explained. She had seen how Emily connected with the teenager and truthfully, it made her love her even more.
"Good, I'm glad." Emily said. Once again, she turned her attention to back out the window. JJ shifted her weight slightly and brought her hand up to her mouth, watching Emily for a moment. She had yet to say 'I love you' to Emily. She had come very, very, close on more than once occasion and almost caught Emily doing the same thing. JJ was going to tell her tonight. Deciding the jet was not the place, not with the whole team there, she needed something else to tell her girlfriend now. Something that reassured the brunette. Something that spoke of commitment.
"I think its a good idea though." She said softly.
Emily lifted her head away from the window and rested it on the seat behind her. "What's that?" She asked JJ.
"You...kids...I can see it." JJ smiled as Emily's eyes lit up and then looked back to JJ, unsure.
"Yeah?" She asked. JJ just stared at her, smiled and nodded. She watched as Emily beamed and looked back out the widow, turning back to JJ every few minutes as they flew home. Each time, JJ just smiled and stayed quiet, relaxing in the moment.