Chapter Eight

Quick note: I am writing under the assumption that Penelope had a good relationship with her biological father despite also having a stepfather (btw anyone else confused with Garcia's family tree?)

Hope y'all enjoy-the reviews seem to suggest (ahh look profiling) that you do!

She was speeding through a tunnel. No, not a tunnel, a vortex. Colors, as varietal as those who walk this earth, shot past her eyes at breakneck speed. Zips of vivid pink and waves of pensive blue sliced through her vision. She seemed to be heading to a swirling mass that was the very point of the vortex. Her mind was blurry and unfocused, though she could've sworn she heard a voice off in the distance. First it was very dull and low, the decibel level almost too low for her to pick up. After a moment, the tone became clearer.

"You're mine." The disembodied voice was screechy, as though sharp fingernails were grating against a chalkboard. However, even through her vapid state, she could've sworn she heard Kevin's voice mixed in with it.

"No, you're not his." Another voice rang out, desperation lacing its tone. "You have a choice: you can let him rule you and ruin your life, or you can tell someone the truth."

"But if I tell…..he will hurt my friends. He'll hurt Derek." Penelope replied in a defeated breath.

"You don't know that he won't hurt them even if you follow his orders. He's unpredictable. You must know that."

"DON'T LISTEN!" the squawking voice hollered menacingly. "IT'S A TRAP!" The colors in front of her increased their brightness as Penelope continued her journey, though, strangely, she didn't appear to be any closer to the end of the vortex.

"Penelope, listen to me. Tell Derek. Tell him everything. The road ahead may be rough, but he will not die, nor will one of your friends."

"How can you possibly know that?" Penelope asked.

"Just trust me." That was a phrase used often by her father…

And then suddenly, the lights disappeared, as though a great light switch had flicked them off.

"Penelope? PENELOPE? Wake up!" Derek's voice brought her back to reality. Her eyes snapped open, and she was suddenly disoriented by the drab hospital colors and the sickening odors of medications that had wafted into her nose. "Don't scare me like that again!"

"What happened?" she managed to rasp out, then gasped in pain and put a hand to her jaw.

"You were trying to tell me something, but then you looked like the pain overwhelmed you and you passed out. The doctors increased the meds and warned me that you'll be kind of loopy for awhile."

She had to tell him. Now. She could feel it in her bones, in every fiber of her being. Though there were no more voices in her head, she could still feel her father encouraging her to do what she now realized, no matter what the consequence, had to be done. What Kevin was doing to her now was killing her, and therefore indirectly, Derek, anyway. No matter how bad her jaw would ache, she promised herself she would tell him everything.

"This is his fault." Her voice was barely above a whisper, but Derek heard every word. He felt his heart plummet into his stomach, but he had to be absolutely sure that she was referring to what he was thinking of.

"What's his fault?" He placed a hand on her arm, feeling like it would be too presumptuous to hold her hand.

"Kevin. He hurt me." Derek's gut twisted in anger, but he couldn't lose his cool, not with his baby girl in need. Penelope took a deep breath before continuing.

"He wants to destroy you. He said if we have contact he'll hurt you, maybe the whole team. He's got a gun—that's where I got this injury, and surveillance cameras." She blinked back tears as the pain, in more ways than one, intensified.

"Baby, why didn't you tell me right away?" Derek felt as though he'd been slapped. He had suspected a little was amiss, but he had no idea what exactly she'd been through. Until now.

Footsteps. Kevin opened the door.

In a rush of blind anger, Derek hurled his frame at Lynch, longing for the sound of breaking bones and torn ligaments to block out the grief he was going through. The two men smacked into the ground.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Kevin panted, demanding an answer. His glasses sat askew on his face, making him look all the more ridiculous, something that inflamed Morgan all the more.

"YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THIS IS, YOU SICK SON OF A BITCH! TELL ME WHY YOU HURT PENELOPE!" Derek's rage had gone way beyond the capacities of an average human being. His desire to kill Kevin was almost irresistible.

"Derek, I never hurt Penelope. I love her." His eyes were wide-eyed in utter befuddlement. "Why would I want to hurt her?"

"THAT'S WHAT I ASKED YOU, YOU ASSHOLE!" Derek bellowed, not believing Lynch's act at all. Kevin picked himself off of the ground and faced Penelope, who sat motionless on the bed, almost afraid to watch the confrontation in front of her.

"Penny, tell him that I didn't hurt you. Tell your oafish friend here that he's made a big mistake." Penelope wilted when she saw the malicious gleam in his eyes that Derek was in no position to witness. She couldn't take a chance. Especially not when her glance met Kevin's bulging pocket.

"Kevin didn't hurt me. I think that was the medication talking." Penelope began to manufacture a hysterical laughter to prove how wonky her brain was right now. Derek frowned in confusion, not completely buying it.

"Maybe we should get a doctor," Kevin suggested. "She might need looking at." As much as Derek was loathing Lynch right now, he realized the truth in his words. They summoned a doctor, who said it was perfectly normal to have minor hallucinations. He seemed to side more with Kevin than Derek, but perhaps this was due to the fact that the former was sporting a nasty bruise that seemed to inspire pity. The doctor administered even more medication, believing that Penelope simply needed rest.

Derek wouldn't let Penelope's words leave his head. He knew there was truth to them. But what was he to do? There was, after all, a chance that the doctor was right, that Penelope was simply loopy for the moment from all the medication.

So, for the first time in a long time, Derek prayed. Prayed for guidance. Prayed for the truth to be revealed.

Most of all, Derek prayed for the woman he loved.