Author's Note: Thanks to the reviewers of the last chapter: FloatingAmoeba; hxchick; 1xadzy3dgftw1xLSNx3dg1xMGG; zzz-zzz84; CrimStudent47; Irismoon; Love-B .xo; aritzia; crazyobsession101; SignedSealedWritten; SparkleInTheSun; canny-bairn; youdude; stefi; savetonight.
Thank you so much for the kind words of encouragement, by no means did I intend to beg for reviews (though I always appreciate them), I just had a few new stories that I posted with minimal reviews so I wanted to check and ensure that people still enjoyed reading JJ stories. However, this chapter contains many references to adult themes, so please mind the rating. Manuel makes his return and WILL be caught.
Also, a HUGE thanks goes out to brynnifer, SignedSealedWritten, and littlegreenbottle who have literally brought this chapter into existence.
And now, without further ado, the chapter that many of you have been waiting for for a long time.
"I see her." Hotch breathed with a sigh of relief into the transmitter as he spied JJ walking towards the parking lot with a man at her side. He silently thanked Garcia once more for her unmatched genius.
Why hadn't he thought of trackers?
"JJ's with an unidentified male. I've got a visual, just approaching the Northwest entrance." He cursed under his breath as he saw a gun sticking out of the back of the man's pants. At his angle, he wouldn't be able to get a shot off without putting JJ in danger.
And if there was even a chance that JJ could be in danger, it wasn't worth the risk.
"Hotch, Reid and I are five minutes away." Reid's voice came over the intercom.
"I'm at the other end of the park." Derek informed through the transceiver. "It will be at least ten minutes."
Sneaking along the line of leafless trees and snow drifts to keep himself even with JJ and the man he hadn't seen before, he growled protectively as he saw the man place his arm firmly around JJ's waist. From his spot nearly twenty feet away from the pair, he could easily see JJ trembling with fear, her thick winter coat conspicuously missing. Whether it was from the man next to her, or the rumbling from the clouds overhead, he wasn't sure.
But he'd be damned if he let JJ out of his sight.
As the pair neared the line of trees in an apparent attempt to reach the parking lot about a hundred yards away, Hotch heard a deep voice speaking softly to JJ with a condescending tone. "—and take off that damn bracelet Alejandra."
Had Hotch looked at the man closely, he would have recognized him easily. As it was, his gaze was focused solely on JJ.
All that mattered was JJ.
Hotch smirked with pride as he saw JJ shake her head lightly and cradle the bracelet tightly to her chest. "No." She muttered so softly Hotch could barely hear her.
Out of the corner of his eye, Hotch saw the tall man quirked an eyebrow at JJ's unusual defiance. He quickly grabbed the bracelet and snatched it off JJ's wrist before shoving the woman slightly. JJ stumbled, knocked off balance, and tumbled into the snow on the cold ground while Manuel pocketed the small jewelry piece.
His resolve snapping, Hotch darted over through the crunchy frozen snow with his gun drawn, well aware that this man could now see him.
The man quickly pulled JJ in front of him, drawing his gun. His next move shocked Hotch to the core. The man thrust his gun into JJ's hands and pointed it toward Hotch. "Don't fail me again, Alejandra." He warned seriously in Spanish.
JJ cowered but slowly placed herself in between the two men, pointing the trembling gun in Hotch's general direction.
Hotch grimaced and tightened his grip on his gun, pointing it alternately towards this man and the shivering blonde whose lips were beginning to adopt a bluish hue. The gun shook in JJ's hands as she looked back at Manuel with thunder cackling overhead, "Don't hurt him Manuel." She begged softly, not realizing her plea had been made in English.
"You're Manuel?" Hotch asked, feeling his entire body consumed with loathing for the man he knew was responsible for JJ's torment. Turning to JJ, Hotch pointed the gun at the unarmed man. "JJ, put the gun down, I'm here."
The gun lowered a fraction of an inch before Manuel narrowed his gaze angrily at the blonde. "Alejandra." He warned, the ever present threat with a single word steadying the gun now pointed firmly at Hotch.
Hotch sighed and pointed the gun toward JJ momentarily before pointing it back at the man behind JJ. Speaking softly to JJ, he winced as he saw her jump with fright as a low thunder rumbled through the air. "JJ, I need you to put down the gun and come over here."
JJ looked back at Manuel, obviously distressed before shaking her head slowly. "I can't."
Manuel chuckled and patted JJ reassuringly on the back. And spoke in English, clearly wanting the Agent to understand. "You see, Agent Hotchner, Alejandra belongs to me. She needs someone to make decisions for her. Isn't that right Alejandra?"
JJ bit her lip indecisively before nodding slowly. She tried to focus on Hotch and ignore the terrifying delusions she knew were a simple result of the drugs Manuel had given her. It had felt so good, and so disgusting at the same time to have the familiar liquid coursing through her veins.
She hated herself.
She hated Manuel.
She had tried—but there was no getting away from Manuel. Ever.
And now, she had to protect Hotch before he got hurt.
The gun shook in her hands and she shook her head. Manuel was right, she needed him. She was so weak.
"Don't listen to him JJ." Hotch focused on the blonde, pleading that his words would somehow get through to her. "Just put down the gun and everything will be alright."
The gun lowered slightly in JJ's hands before the sound of Manuel's voice made it snap back to pointing squarely at Hotch's chest. "Nothing will ever be alright, Alejandra." Manuel said softly. "You know that, and I know that. None of this is ever going to be over."
"What is going on here?" Rossi asked, yanking his weapon out in front of him while Reid reluctantly did the same.
JJ's eyes darted around nervously at the four men that surrounded her, three of whom had weapons trained on either her or Manuel. "JJ, step aside." Rossi ordered firmly, hoping that by encouraging some distance between JJ and Manuel, she might be able to escape the death grip he seemed to have on her overly worn psyche.
Manuel snorted gleefully. "See Alejandra, even your supposed friends don't trust you to make the right choice. They know you're not strong enough." The man using JJ as a human shield seemed to grow in power before their eyes. "But Alejandra, you can end it all right now."
The gun wavered slightly as JJ turned back to Manuel with a questioning glance, though the profilers stood firmly in their spots, unsure of what JJ would do if they startled her with a sudden movement. A clap of thunder caused JJ to jump once more, the gun quivering in her hands.
"What the hell?" Morgan cried, yanking out his own weapon as Rossi followed at his heels.
"Nice of you to join us Derek." Manuel smirked, the interaction between the pair going mostly unnoticed by the profilers due to the blonde still holding the gun pointed sharply in Hotch's direction.
"JJ, put down the gun. Let us help you." Derek pled, realizing far more than the others that anything Manuel had to say would be the words of the devil himself.
"Alejandra, look at the power I placed in your hands. I trust you to make the choice that won't disappoint me." Manuel encouraged. Placing his arm around JJ, he pushed his thumb forcefully into the scars that ran down along her wrist. "You've tried it before."
JJ shuddered, remembering how angry Manuel had been when he found her bleeding on the floor. After the second time, she had quickly come to the realization that if she was ever going to make another attempt, she had better well succeed.
"JJ—" Hotch warned, trying to drown out Manuel's words. He inched closer to JJ's trembling frame, stopping when he saw her panic momentarily and take a step closer to Manuel. "I want you to listen to me. I want you to put down the gun and step aside."
"This could all be over. All of the pain, all of the nightmares, they could all go away." Manuel encouraged. "You have my permission this time, Alejandra. Only this time, you don't have to fail like before."
"JJ, no!" Hotch insisted.
As if in one fluid motion, the gun moved from pointing the barrel at Hotch to being pressed tightly against JJ's temple.
Manuel smiled gleefully. "Good, Alejandra—"
"JJ." Hotch interrupted and quickly held up his gun to place it back in its holster. Derek and Rossi both kept their weapons trained on Manuel, ready for the briefest second that they might be able to arrest him.
Or shoot him.
The second was by far the better option.
"Think of Will, and Henry. They love you. They want you to get better. We all want you to get better. We're here for you." Hotch reminded her soothingly, cringing as he saw her visibly flinch when he tried to step toward her.
"He was going to take you to the hospital." Manuel reminded her softly, grinning as a few droplets of rain began to fall from the sky. "And you told me, Emily didn't want you anymore. You are a burden to them just like you are a burden to me."
JJ bit her lip and her finger inched closer to the trigger, each droplet of water striking her like a hammer hitting a nail.
"That's not true JJ." Hotch corrected, trying to speak over Manuel but listening just long enough to know what arguments he needed to refute. "I took you away from Emily." His voice caught as he realized that this too was all his fault. If he hadn't been so caught up in his fury…maybe things right now would be different. Instead he used Emily as an easy scapegoat.
That had to be fixed.
"Emily was trying to help." He assured JJ, honestly believing the statement was true, "I was—we all are just trying to help. But—" He wracked his mind for some way to explain this to JJ, "But sometimes we have to make difficult choices for those we love."
The gun faltered almost imperceptibly as JJ lightly relaxed the gun against her temple.
"Alejandra." Manuel warned. JJ's fingers tightened on the gun, her white knuckles obvious even to the Agents standing several feet away.
Rossi cursed under his breath. Since Manuel was not wielding a weapon or physically putting the Agents in danger none of them could shoot at will.
Yet.
He'd be more than happy to end this bastard's life, but he also knew that JJ deserved justice, and a quick death was too good for this scum bag.
Derek tightened his fingers around the cool metal of the gun, grimacing as he kept his target trained just above JJ's left shoulder. While he knew he wouldn't be able to get a shot off, he wasn't about to let this guy go. He shook his head as he realized they were at an impasse. Every time Hotch said something, Manuel had a counter point. Neither seemed to be able to hold any weight.
Eventually, they might just have to rush JJ and try to end this with force.
They had no idea how she would react—and none of them were about to risk her safety.
But the weather was rapidly deteriorating—they were running out of time.
Suddenly, a softer voice spoke up from Morgan's left. "JJ, honey. Put down the gun." Emily stepped forward, a large plush blanket tucked lightly under her arm.
JJ's arm dropped slightly at the sight of Emily. Emily winced as JJ trembled, whether from fear or from the light chill in the air, she was uncertain.
"What are you doing here?" Manuel spat softly. He had been following JJ and the agents for weeks and the sight of the other woman hampered his sure success.
Emily shrugged off Manuel's question and focused on trying to maintain JJ's eye contact. "I thought you might be cold." She held the blanket out simply, blatantly ignoring the gun loosely pointed at JJ's head. "Do you want to trade me the gun for the blanket?"
JJ bit her left thumbnail, the gun shaking in JJ's right hand.
Taking JJ's hesitation as a positive sign, Emily spoke softly and inched her way closer to the trembling blonde. "JJ, it's okay to be scared, but you can't do this. Do you hear me? There are people that love you, that want to help you get better. I know this is scary now—" Emily shifted imperceptibly closer to JJ, pausing with each step to gauge JJ's reaction, "—but one day, it won't be as scary."
JJ glanced back at Manuel before shirking slightly, "I don't want to be scared anymore." She murmured softly, wincing away from the man whose face contorted angrily.
"I know." Emily assured with her voice full of sympathy and compassion as she stepped closer to JJ. "It won't always be like this."
"It will always be like this." Manuel countered in JJ's ear as he yanked her closer to him. "There is only one way to stop it."
"JJ," Derek spoke up, hit with a stroke of brilliance, "If you do this, Emily will be all alone. You don't want to hurt Emily, do you?" He knew it was underhanded and manipulative, but if he got JJ a foot away from this asshole, he could worry about repairing the damage later.
Manuel smiled, "Remember the little girl, Alejandra? Or the doctor? All you do is hurt the people you care about. It's better this way Alejandra."
Morgan's face dropped at Manuel's counterpoint, realizing too well that he didn't know either of the situations that the man was referring to.
Emily shook her head, focused completely on the blonde in front of her. "JJ, has Manuel ever told you he loved you?" Emily asked, hoping her new tactic would work. Seeing JJ's blank response, she smirked and pressed forward. "Do you remember that time we were at the bar? And we met Brad? We had so much fun that day. A real FBI Agent. Love is being able to laugh with someone because you can be yourself." Emily smiled despite the seriousness of the situation. "JJ, I love you."
"Alejandra—" Manuel attempted to interrupt, seeing the gun lag against JJ's temple.
Catching on to Emily's brilliant plan, Hotch stepped closer to JJ. "What about when Henry was born? I don't think I've ever seen you smile so much. JJ we were all so happy for you that day. Love is happy. It shouldn't ever hurt." Hotch stepped forward slowly, "Love should never mean that you are taken away from the people you love. We love you JJ." Hotch added softly.
"Alejandra!" Manuel shouted angrily, realizing that his control was slipping through his fingers. He felt a surge as the gun raised in JJ's hand, but he frowned as he saw JJ's hands trembling more than they were before. "Love?" Manuel scoffed silently in her ear, "How can they love you? They abandoned you for three years. Alejandra, I had to protect you because they didn't care—"
Quickly speaking over the controlling sociopath, Derek moved around Emily's side, flanking Manuel from a different angle "What about that time you were just new in the unit and we spent the night playing darts. You kicked my ass." Derek shook his head, "That was when I decided you and I would be good friends. Remember, me the player, you the hustler?" He smiled at the inside joke and felt a surge as a trace of a smile flashed ever so briefly along JJ's lips. "Friendship," Derek choked, "love, they're all the same." He took one step closer, tightening the quickly forming circle around JJ and Manuel. "I admire you JJ, you're my friend."
"You're just another whore that they feel sorry for." Manuel spoke louder, hoping to drown out the profilers as they proceeded to share happy memories of easier times. "How could they admire you? You're just a whore—"
JJ's head hung slightly at Manuel's words spoken almost directly to her soul.
"What about the Redskins game?" Reid asked, filling in the lone gap and coming up from behind Manuel. JJ shifted slightly to see the gangly genius. "I checked. That was the only game the Redskins won the entire season, I don't know that I've ever seen you so happy. I've never had so much popcorn in my entire life." Reid chuckled at the memory, and then grew serious. "Love is not withholding food or punishing someone, love is giving a person everything they need because you believe they have value. JJ, you mean so much to me, I value you."
"Alejandra" Manuel spoke sharply, incensed as he could feel the tight bonds on JJ's psyche slipping through his fingers and even more livid as he realized he was slowly being surrounded. "Shoot the gun!" He yelled. "Do it! Do it now!"
Tears were streaming down her face, and all could see the gun shaking violently in her hands.
"From the minute I met you JJ," Rossi stepped forward, the team somehow neatly forming a complete circle around JJ, Manuel and an approaching Emily, "Well actually, when you ripped into me after I leaked that mask on my first case—I realized that you were the best agent the FBI had ever seen. Love is respect. I respect you JJ."
"JJ, you are my best friend. Bad things have happened, but good things can happen too. Love is having hope in the future, trusting the people you care about." Emily smiled, emboldened by the team's support of her tactic. Manuel was shouting incessantly, but nothing else mattered as JJ's eyes bored into Emily with indecision. "I trust you." She held out the blanket in her hands, "Can you put down the gun so I can give you this blanket?"
JJ hesitated, the gun loosely pointed toward her head with her finger far from the trigger, her breath coming out in huffed sobs as she tried to decide.
She didn't know who she even was anymore.
Hotch spoke up, realizing they were teetering on the verge of success, "JJ, Manuel can only offer you pain. Happy things can only happen if you put down the gun."
The gun sagged, but before Emily could close the short distance between JJ and herself, Manuel snatched the gun from JJ's relaxed hand. "This will never be over." He promised, ripping the gun from JJ's hands.
In what felt like slow motion, Manuel raised the gun and a shot sounded immediately. Emily crashed against JJ's trembling frame, not knowing where the shot had come from as she forced JJ to the ground.
"JJ, are you okay?" She asked, pushing herself off the blonde only far enough to check the younger woman for injuries.
Manuel looked down at his hand, involuntarily pressed tightly against his stomach. Pulling his hand away, his eyes widened in shock as it came back covered in blood. His legs buckled underneath him as he crumpled to the ground. Rossi stepped back and held up his gun in satisfaction, glad that his bullet had found its mark squarely in the bastard's back.
"We're going to need two ambulances," Reid muttered to a waiting Garcia through the transceiver. "Suspect is down and injured. JJ is safe, but she'll need an ambulance."
Infuriated, Derek stepped up quickly, placing the heel of his thick shoe against the exit wound on Manuel's abdomen. The evil man cried out in pain and released his hold on JJ's thin arm. Without so much as a downward glance at the man writhing in pain beneath him, Derek gently lifted JJ up off the cold ground.
Derek quickly sloughed off his jacket and placed it around JJ's quivering shoulders. "Go." He suggested to JJ kindly, looking down at Manuel and putting a little more pressure against the wound.
"You take care of this?" Hotch asked softly as he put a strong arm around JJ's shoulders.
"Yeah." Derek nodded. "I've got this, don't I Manuel?" He bit out the man's name in disgust. The other profilers thought they could understand his hatred of the man that had caused JJ so much pain.
But they had no idea.