Chapter 14

Derek sat next to Penelope in their bed for the first night since she was taken. The doctor had let her leave with Derek barring her complete weekly psych evaluation until she would be able to go back to work.

"I don't understand," she said quietly.

"What's there to understand? We're having a baby,"

"Yeah but the doctor made me take those pills so I wouldn't be pregnant with…"

She couldn't say his name.

"His baby."

"Reid explained it to me baby girl. Those pills only work right after conception. If the baby was already conceived they wouldn't do anything."

He told her kissing her stomach where their baby was now growing.

"This is all too much,"

She said as she kicked the sheets off her body and stood up ready to leave the room. She needed some time alone. Since being taken by Mark she had zero time to herself. Someone was always there and right now she needed some time to think.

"Where are you going?!"

He asked following her out of the bedroom.

"I need to think,"

She told him.

"Come back to bed. I'll let you think."

"No I need to go. Just like you did, the day Mark took me!"

She spat.

He instantly paled and took a step back from her. She blamed him, he knew she would. Fuck! He blamed himself for everything that happened to her. But he still didn't want her going out of the house in the middle of the night alone.

"Please Just come back to bed,"

He pleaded with her.

"Fuck off!"

She ran out of the house.

He threw on his shoes and took off after her. When he made it out of the front door she was nowhere to be seen. How in the hell had she gotten away so fast? He looked all around and saw no sign of her.

He started walking down the street, when he came across the park in their neighborhood. There she was sitting on a bench by herself. He cautiously walked up to her sitting down next to her.

"I love you,"

He said quietly.

"How could all of this happen? I was raped repeatedly and made to believe it was you. Now I'm pregnant and well, I'm not even sure I want to be a mother in this type of world anymore. Especially if someone like Mark Buford is still alive."

He took her hand in his and squeezed it.

"You are going to be an amazing mom, Penelope. I have no doubt in my mind about that. Even with all the bad in this world you always find the good. And I know you will do the same, and teach the same to our child."

"I don't know if I can do this if he is still here,"

She said tears running down her face.

Derek took a deep breath.

"I got a call from Hotch earlier."

He turned to look at her.

"When they brought Mark to the jail cell. There apparently was a scuffle of some sort. One of the other inmates had sharpened a toothbrush to a pointed end."

"Oh god…"

"He bled out in three minutes,"

He explained He had kept the information from her after Hotch had told him not wanting to place any more stress on her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked as she placed her hand on her belly.

"We had just gotten the news you could come home today. I didn't want to tell you think and have you need to stay there. I wanted you home with me."

"Thank you," she said quietly.

He pulled her closer to his side and she instantly cradled into his embrace breaking down into violent sobs as she let out everything that she had been holding in.

"He made me believe you didn't love me and I was only a good lay to you,"

"I love you more than anything in this world. You are my rock. Why do you think I gave you that ring? I know I didn't purpose like I should have but I needed you to have it. And as soon as you want we can get married."

"You still want me, even though I am damaged goods now?" she asked tentatively

"Baby, you are not damaged goods. Didn't you say the same thing to me when I said that about myself? After it originally came out that I was abused."

"You were a little boy, you couldn't stop him," she explained to him.

"And you were drugged. Sweetheart, just because you were older than me when it happened does not mean you are damaged in anyway."

She looked down at her belly as Derek placed his hand there. "I love you and our baby, Penelope. And I will do whatever I can to prove that to you."