A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! As everyone knows, there was no way I could kill off Morgan! He's my favorite. Please note that in this chapter there is a flashback scene. Even though it is labeled, I thought it would be easier to identify if it were written in italics.
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Penelope ran into the darkness, wincing at the feel of the cold snow beneath her bare feet. She had to get away. She knew Derek and the team was looking for her, just as she realized that without her there to look up information for them, it would be more difficult than normal. She had to reach somewhere with a phone. Or a car. Or a carrier pigeon. Anything that would tell her team she was alive and to come and get her.
She ignored the tingling pain in her toes, as well as the sting of tree branches hitting her in the face as she ran blindly through the woods. Faintly, she could see the light of a house up ahead. She prayed silently that the people inside were not associated with her kidnappers. She prayed they would take her to Derek.
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"Mr. Flue, your company uses stage make up, is that correct?" Rossi questioned the slim young man.
"Yes, sir. We have a production currently in the running of Cyrano de Bergerac. It is rather difficult to have someone play Cyrano without makeup." He smiled, then immediately looked scared at he glanced at Morgan's stony face.
Rossi glanced at Morgan before continuing. "Has any of your make up gone missing recently?"
"Yes..well, no." He sighed. "We had some stolen by a member of our company. We kicked him out for it, but it's not missing, I mean, I know who has it."
"Sir, we are going to need that name."
"Why? What's going on? What does missing make up have to do with the FBI?"
"We are investigating a kidnapping."
"Kidnapping? You think Brian has something to do with a kidnapping? No, he wouldn't do that. And if he did, it was his brother and cousin that talked him into it. He'd never do it on his own."
"You sound very sure." Morgan stated flatly. "Why?"
"Brian and I…well, we were lovers for 3 years. It went downhill when his cousin came into town for a visit. Dude was a real homophobe. It made Brian not even want to be a part of a relationship with me. And he loved me."
"Sir, we need to speak to Brian. Could you give us his last name?" Rossi carefully asked.
"Flynn. Brian Flynn."
"Mr. Flue, we need an address. Where can we find Mr. Flynn?" Morgan queried coldly. The first lead into finding Penelope was here and he could feel the adrenaline racing through him.
"I… It's 1449 Yardley Place in Waterbury. It's about 15 minutes from here."
"Thank you, Mr. Flue. We'll be in touch." Rossi stated as he watched Morgan leave the room, cell phone in hand.
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Penelope gasped in pain, slowly moving despite the freezing temperatures and incredibly painful feet. She grabbed a nearby tree branch, looking at the house in front of her, as she watched carefully just as Derek had told her to.
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3 years earlier
"Penelope, listen. I know what you went through with Battle. I should have been there to protect you."
"Aw, Morgan, that's not your job."
"It IS my job, Penelope. One that I have taken seriously for a lot of years. But I wasn't there to save you when you needed it. That eats me up inside, knowing that you were alone, scared and helpless."
"Morgan…"
"Let me finish. I want to teach you some things. Show you how to take care of yourself if something ever happens again when I am away from you."
"I don't believe in violence, Derek."
"It's real, Penelope. Sometimes you have no other choice but to fight. If it is fight or die, do you really want to die, Penelope?"
"Well, no, of course not. But talking works, it works sometimes, doesn't it. I've seen the team settle an UNSUB with words."
"And some of them we have to settle with a bullet. I just want you to let me show you some basic self defense moves and some crisis management techniques. Please, Baby Girl, I don't ever want to lose you. And I don't ever want to look at you in a hospital bed again."
"Okay. So tell the crisis management stuff first. I'm not quite ready for the self defense lessons yet." Garcia glanced down at her stitches.
"First off, be aware of your surroundings. If something doesn't feel right, get out of there. Use your instincts, they won't steer you wrong. If you are being followed, try to head for a group of people. There is safety in numbers. The more people you can lose yourself in, the better." Penelope nodded. So far, this was common sense, she could totally handle this.
"Second, no matter what happens, do not EVER give up. I promise you, Penelope, if something happens to you, I will move heaven and earth to find you. Hold on, no matter what happens, and I will come to you."
"And finally, Penelope. And this is the most important. Do whatever you have to but stay alive. If you have to, play into their fantasy. Do anything you can so that they don't hurt you or incapacitate you. And then when they least expect it, because they think that you are complacent, you can make your move and attack. When you do, you use anything you can to even your odds. Use weapons, dirt, logs from the fire, smash their head into the floor…whatever you can to stop them long enough for you to run away. Don't stop. Ignore that you are tired, that you hurt. Concentrate on one thing. Freedom. Because once you have your freedom, there's nothing, no force on this earth that will stop me from finding you."
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Penelope gasped as se reached the front porch of the house she had seen in the distance. She half crawled up the stairs, and rang the doorbell, waiting for someone to come.
An older man answered the door. "You foolish woman! What're ya doin' dressed like that in this weather. Yu'll catch yur death!"
"H…Hel…Help m..mmeeee."
The man immediately ushered her inside the warm cabin. "Come're darlin. Ole' Jake'll fix ya up. Where's yur man? You gotta ring."
"D….Derek. C…call Derek."
"Derek, is that yur man's name?"
"N.. him."
"Let's get you warm. Then we'll call yur man. What's yur name, blondie?" Jake asked as he bundled her close to the roaring fire and covering her with a thick blanket.
"P…Penelope."
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"Why are all of these roads so narrow? And has any of the planning people here heard of a street sign?" Derek grumbled as Rossi drove through the Vermont countryside.
"If you don't stop, I'm going to turn this car around." Rossi huffed in frustration.
"Rossi, seriously…you have to be…" Morgan was cut off by his cell phone ring.
"Wow, you actually have service. Did you know that only 47% of the state of Vermont has reliable cell phone service?" Reid queried.
"STOP the car!"Morgan screamed, tears streaming down his face. "Where are you? I'm coming to get her. Don't let her leave, please!"
Rossi pulled the car to a stop, watching Morgan carefully. Reid grinned suddenly at Morgan's words.
"She's alive? Penelope's alive?" Rossi asked, interrupting Morgan's conversation. Morgan didn't stop speaking, just turned his head and nodded vehemently.
"Please, put her on the phone. I need to talk to her." Morgan requested quietly.
Jake agreed and suddenly Morgan heard the most beautiful sound ever- a sleepy, pained voice cracking over one word…."D…erek?"
Morgan's voice suddenly choked up. "Hey, Baby Girl. I'm on my way, sweetheart. You did it, you held on for me. You hear me? I'm coming for you."
"Knew you would. Hurry, k?"
Okay, Baby Girl. Okay. We'll be there soon, I promise!" Morgan hung up the phone. "Rossi, turn around and head to 67 Stowe Mountain Road. We've got a baby girl to retrieve!"
Rossi grinned and turned the SUV around, speeding as quickly as he dared towards Penelope, as Reid quickly dialed Hotch to share the good news.