Morgan took a few cautious steps toward the concrete bench inside the park. Behind him, two agents in bulletproof vests watched for any movements, their guns at the ready. Once they were in a few feet of the bench a brown envelope came into view. The taller support agent was the first to send the message back to the rest of the team waiting outside of the park.
"Get the bomb squad in here. There's another package" He demanded through his radio.
Morgan snatched at his own radio and pulled it close to his mouth. "Keep them on standby" He instructed. "The UnSub wouldn't have done all this just to blow up three agents"
After a small pause Hotch's voice could be heard through the radio. "Can you tell what it is?"
"It looks empty. Possibly a piece of paper but nothing big enough to set a dangerous charge" Morgan replied after sizing the envelope up.
There was another long pause. "Be careful" Hotch finally instructed before the line went quiet. Morgan let out a breath then took a step forward, reaching forward and picking up the envelope. He cautiously felt along the opening for anything unusual then carefully pulled it open. Like Morgan had suspected, inside was a piece of torn notebook paper.
"It's a note" The first agent spoke through the radio while Morgan read the instructions. Without explaining to the agents what was happening, he dropped the paper on the bench then closed the gap between him and the payphone a few feet away. His hand slide underneath until he felt a solid object and pulled it free, a silver flip phone dropping into his hand.
Morgan thought about sending a message back to Hotch but his instincts had already taken over as he flipped the phone open. Immediately it began ringing so Morgan pressed it to his ear.
"The phone is ringing" The second agent mumbled as he and the other man watched Morgan.
"Hello?" Morgan cautiously asked.
There was a long pause before Morgan heard someone breathe in on the other end of the line. "Hello agent Morgan" The smug voice began.
"Who is this?" Morgan asked through gritted teeth.
"Rules first, Derek" The voice said after tutting him.
After a long pause Morgan became impatient with the sound of the man's breathing. "Tell me the rules then" He practically shouted.
"Patience, Derek. Patience is the key to everything" He said then paused for another few seconds. "I suppose it's hard not to be a little highly strung when Ellie, the girl you promised to protect, goes missing. Or is it the mentally unstable boy who depended on your friend Spencer that's stressing you out?" He asked then paused to think. "No, I think the person causing the most pressure is little Declan. After all, Emily almost died to protect him. And yet, I have him"
"You shut your mouth right now-" Morgan began through gritted teeth.
"Oh, does Derek have a temper too?" The man asked, interrupting Morgan as he spoke. "Impatient and bad tempered… not good traits, are they Derek?" He added then grinned sickly.
"Why are you doing this?" Morgan finally sighed.
"Derek, you and I are both smart enough to not need the hostage speech. I'm not going to tell you why I'm doing this until later. Ask again and my cause will… escalate" The man said, satisfied with the word he settled on. "As I was saying Derek: rules. I'll give you a few moments to compose yourself before I explain them to you. I'll be calling back in 2 minutes, I trust you to not tap the phone. The consequences for little Ellie are rather unsavoury"
xxxxxxxxxx
"He's calling back in a couple minutes. Do not tap the phone" Morgan rushed down the line after he saw one of the agents reach for his radio.
"What did he say, Morgan?" Rossi was the first to ask, outside the park the team had gathered around the radio connecting them with Morgan.
"He was talking about rules… He has Ellie and the others, he admitted it. I just need a little longer with him" Morgan quickly said then glanced around the park.
"Try and remember everything he says. Stay focused and find out as much as you can about the kids" Hotch instructed, after a few seconds of silence the cell phone jumped to life in Morgan's hand.
"I've gotta go" he mumbled before letting go of his radio and answering the cell.
For the first few seconds Morgan could only hear breathing before the man's voice returned. "Had a nice chat with your family, Derek?"
"They just wanted to know I was okay" Morgan answered quickly, his eyes darting round to see if the man was watching him.
"Lucky for you that isn't against the rules" The man stated in a sickly sweet tone. "Ah, that was what I was going to tell you about on this phone call. I want you to listen carefully now. If you break a rule, accidentally or not, there will be consequences. If you attempt to find your way around a rule or do anything behind my back there will be consequences. Any and all consequences will be extremely unpleasant for all parties. Have I made myself clear?"
"Completely" Morgan replied after swallowing the lump in his throat.
"Rule number one- This game will be played out strictly between the eight members of the BAU team. Those members are Erin Strauss, Aaron Hotchner, David Rossi, Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, Spencer Reid, Penelope Garcia and you, Derek Morgan. I am aware of the protocol within the FBI so your higher authority can be aware of the game however they are not allowed to participate. Understood?"
"Perfectly" Morgan answered after a small pause to take in what he had heard.
"Rule number two- to keep this a level playing field no cell phones will be tapped. Fingerprinting and other forms of identifying the participants are aloud. I will not tap your phones so I trust you to play fairly with me. Rule number three- family members of the players are not allowed to live anywhere but their current residence while the game is being played. Protection can be posted outside of the houses but the people must not change their residence. Still keeping up?"
"Yes" Morgan exhaled.
"Final rule, Derek" The man said in a sickly sweet voice. "Rule number four- All players must play until the end of the game. If any players, on either team, resign from the game they will be in direct conflict of the rules. All punishments for breaking rules have equal severity. No rule breaking will be tolerated or given a small punishment. Do we understand each other?"
"Yes" Morgan repeated while nodding rapidly.
"Under the bench there will be a copy of the rules in a brown envelope. It will be taped underneath. I trust you to take it to the others so they have an equal start. After all, you are a team" The man slowly said before hanging up the phone.
I decided I'd make another chapter for all three stories to help everyone make their decisions. This story has had the most positive feedback so far and is in the lead for which one I'll continue but maybe a second chapter will shake things up a little. Hope you liked the chapter and please review if you've got time!