A/N: Okay! Okay! I'll finish it tonight. But don't blame me if you don't like the Author's Note at the end! :o)
Emily forces her body to go limp. There had been no bench, no trashcan, nothing to hide behind this time. She had been 99.9% sure this would be Khali's response to being arrested. All she can do is try to make her body as flexible as possible to minimize the pain of impact.
Doesn't seem to work because it still hurts like shit when she lands.
The breath gets knocked out of her. She lies for a moment, trying to catch her breath. Suddenly Morgan's face appears in front of her.
"EMILY!"
"Fi- -fi- -fine. Breathe…need…air…"
"Just relax. Bastard's dead. All the bombs are located. This shit is really over."
Emily slowly shakes her head and sits up. "No, it's not. We need to get a cover story out about this explosion. I'm thinking gas buildup in the sewers like in Georgetown a few years ago. And then we sit on the bomb locations. When the bastards come for the packs in the morning, we arrest them. Call them pick-pockets, loiterers, I don't care. But they get taken when they go for the bombs."
Morgan nods. "Got it." He stands and offers her his hand. She takes it and climbs to her feet. "All okay?" he asks with concern.
She nods. "Fine. But I'm going to hurt like shit tomorrow."
He chuckles. "Damn right you are. You're getting too old for this crap, Prentiss."
She grins and pats him on the shoulder. "You can say that again. Let's get everyone together and get ready to bring this to an end. The big press conference is at 9. People will start to gather by 8."
"Lead on, Boss," he says.
She just raises an eyebrow at him as they make their way to the prearranged meeting point.
It is 8:45 and a large crowd has gathered near the Capital steps. Barriers keep them back a few feet but if a bomb is tossed it could easily clear the barrier and hit the legislators.
But there are no live bombs anymore. Thanks to the tags left at the house in Alexandria, replacements had been purchased and stuffed to look full even before the 6 bombs were found. Now those fakes sit in place awaiting the 6 men who would retrieve them and use them to kill.
Emily scans the crowd from her position near the Capital steps. She stands on a small riser so she can see above the crowd. She sees movement near one of the cans. She lifts her wrist.
"Suspicious activity at can 2," she reports.
"Copy. Moving in," Hotch responds.
Emily watches as Hotch and two officers approach the man who is carefully removing the backpack from the can. It is obvious he thinks it could explode if he moves too quickly. Hotch grabs him by the arm.
"Drop it. It's a fake and you're under arrest."
The man starts to pull away then notices the two police officers in front of him with their guns out. He immediately calms. Hotch cuffs him and pats him down. A couple of civilians watch with interest.
"You're under arrest for stealing that backpack. Let's go," Hotch says loud enough for those around to hear.
By 8:59 all but one terrorist has been taken into custody. Two had tried to cause a scene but had been quickly quieted by pepper spray…laced with a narcotic thanks to Harlan Wayans. Emily's attention is now completely on the last can. She hears the crowd start to clap as the legislators start to file out of the Capital. First the Senators, then the Representatives, and then finally the President. She had managed to convince Secret Service that the Vice President should not be here.
"Where the hell are you," she whispers. "Where are you hiding?"
Her eyes stray to the people gathered at the security barrier. As she starts to swing her attention back to the can a face catches her eye. She quickly looks back, searching the crowd for the man who had been in the picture with Brent. It takes her a second but she finally spots him. He stares with a murderous calm at the descending mass of people.
"Shit…Khali would have set off a bomb himself. He'd want to see his own handiwork. But the hit to the lawmakers was supposed to be the start of it all," she suddenly realizes. Khali's was the sixth can. But a vest bomb right at the barrier would do untold damage. She lifts her mike as she eases off the riser. "Suspect in second row behind security barrier. Believe he is wearing a vest bomb. Moving in."
"Prentiss! No!" Hotch comes back.
Emily puts herself between the legislators and the bomber. She would only have one shot. If he even thinks he's been discovered he'll detonate. She eases her gun out of her holster and cocks it, scanning the crowds as if looking for someone. As soon as she gets right in front of him she takes one calming breath. From the corner of her eye she sizes up where he is. He is now at the front of the crowd. Perfect.
In one motion she turns and fires, putting a bullet right between his eyes. People scream and panic, scattering away from the area. Legislators race to get back into the building.
Emily, gun still ready, approaches the man on the ground. He's dead. She vaults over the barrier and carefully unzips the jacket he wears. Her eyes get wide as she sees the timer counting down. It's just got 7 seconds left.
"DEADMAN SWITCH! RUN! RUN! RUN!" she screams, waving her arms to get the first responders away. She grabs a small child that a mother is struggling with, pushing the woman ahead of her. She races for the side of the steps, hoping to hide them all behind the marble side of it.
For the second time in less than 6 hours an explosion rocks the area…and Emily's team has no idea if she made it to safety or not.
"PRENTISS!" Morgan screams into his mike. "PRENTISS REPORT! EMILY!"
"Stop…yelling," she mumbles into her mike. "Help the…injured."
"You sound like you're one of the injured," he states, racing towards her location.
"Not injured. Just…too old…for this shit."
Morgan can't help but smile but doesn't stop running until he reaches his partner's side. She looks up as he comes around the side
"Hell of a shot, Em. You sure you're not hurt?"
"I'm fine. Just had to catch my breath." She extends her hand to him and he pulls her up. "Dead? Injured?"
"Some injuries. Shrapnel in the bomb so it may have been the ones with rat poison on them. EMT's and hospitals were briefed that it was a possibility and are treating people accordingly."
"The Congressmen?"
"All okay." He grins and looks around. "Of course they looked like chickenshits in front of the camera's running and screaming." Emily chuckles at the image. "But they are okay."
"Good." She kneels down beside the woman, who holds her son like she will never let him go again. "Are you okay, ma'am?"
"I…I…" the woman can't speak.
Emily lifts her wrist. "I need a medic at the Capital steps. Mother and child in need of assistance." She brings her mike down and strokes a hand over the little boy's head. "It will be okay, ma'am. Just stay here and someone will be here in a moment. It's over, ma'am."
Emily stands back up. She and Morgan step away to give the woman a bit of privacy with her son. They look over as Hotch, Rossi, Reid and Wayans walk up. Wayans extends his hand to Emily.
"Damn fine job, Prentiss. We'll need to make as statement and- -"
"You make it. I could care less about being in front of a camera. I need to get this shit written up, see to the bookings and arrests from last night and this morning, and then I have a very important party to attend."
Wayans smiles. "One of the Senators already extended an invite?"
"Fuck no. Something more important with an even more important guest than any of those blowhards up there."
"Oh! The President."
"Hell no. My daughter's first birthday. No one in the world more important than my kids."
Wayans smiles. "I can understand that. We'll have a lot of paperwork to deal with on Monday. After that…well…we'll have to discuss your future. You've opened a lot of doors for yourself the past couple of weeks."
"Only door I need is the one to the bullpen at the BAU."
"At least give me a chance to tell you what I'm thinking."
"Suit yourself. Won't change my mind. When it came down to it, Harlan, the team you put together had two members with their own agenda. I don't have that problem with my team. We're there for each other. Always."
He raises an eyebrow. "Well…not always," he says, referring to Winslow.
She steps into his face. "Always," she reiterates. "Bad decisions are bad decisions. I still know their hearts. And that is more important than anything. Now excuse me, I have some work to do."
Harlan watches her walk away…and knows he will never work with Emily Prentiss again.
In the Capital security conference room Emily stares at the members of her team. Only Leroy Allen remains from her task force. She extends her hand to him.
"Damn fine job, Leroy. You ever need a reference you have one."
He nods. "Thanks, Boss. It's been a pleasure working with you."
She grins. "You say that now. Wait until we start all the damn paperwork on Monday."
He chuckles. "As long as it doesn't explode I'll be happy to work on it."
Emily nods and smiles her agreement. She turns to her BAU teammates. "I can never thank you all enough for your help. They would have won if you hadn't ignored the bullshit and stepped up to the plate. I need to get a few statements from you and I'll probably have some follow up with you next week but for the most part you're free of all this crap. Give me a couple hours and then enjoy the rest of your weekend."
Her teammates nod. She starts towards the office. "Rossi, how about you first."
He nods and stands. "Sounds good."
As he enters, he closes the doors behind him and sits down. They stare across the desk at each other.
"Why does it seem like you never got pissed at me?" Emily asks bluntly.
Rossi smiles. "You were hurting, kid. Of course you lashed out at those that love you and that you love in return. Who else do we hurt the most?"
"So…we've always been good?"
He nods. "Yes. I was a bit disappointed in the way you handled your anger but I never faulted you for it. Truth is you're right: Hotch or I should have been out there with you. I have to live with the fact that I was glad Morgan said he could make the trek. I didn't want to go but I should have. Next time I'll put you and the team ahead of my own personal comfort. I'm sorry I wasn't out there for you, Emily. I swear I'll never make that mistake again."
Emily smiles. "Thanks, Rossi. I promise to try to voice my displeasure in a more mature way in the future."
"Just try to?"
Emily shrugs. "Hey, I know me too well to promise it outright."
They both share a laugh. Finally Emily sits forward. "Okay, time to get back to the shit at hand."
He nods and Emily starts to take his statement regarding what happened starting with the home raids the night before.
Reginald Cervantes leaps to his feet as Emily approaches his jail cell. "Prentiss! Get my ass out of here!"
Emily stands a foot away from the bars. "Noth told us everything, Cervantes. You wanted to turn Khali and instead you gave him the time and space he needed to set up his cell, build his bombs, and nearly succeed in his attack against our government. Not only is your ass staying in that cell but you'll be lucky to spend the rest of you life in it."
"Oh, really? And if I'm not lucky?"
She steps closer to the cell, her eyes hardening even more. "If you're not lucky, and I am, you'll be able to tell Myron Phillipe hello for me."
She turns and starts to walk out. He is still screaming and cussing at her but she is done with him. Time to get home to the ones that can help her forget all about the hell of this task force and prepare for the questions and debriefings yet to come.