Daisy walked into the precinct feeling numb to the world. It had only been 30 minutes since the hotel incident; it was long enough for her to know what was going to happen. She could feel Adam's hand on her shoulder offering support when she tensed after seeing Dale and Hotch standing in the bullpen with angry looks plastered on their faces. She gave Adam a hug before telling him to go to the conference room where the rest of the team gathered. She watched Adam's retreating back until he disappeared behind a wooden door before following Dale and Hotch into Dale's office. She took a seat behind Dale's desk while Dale sat on a chair and Hotch shut the door before leaning against the frame.
"I don't even know where to start." Hotch said letting out an exasperated sigh.
"At the beginning would be a good place." Daisy said sarcastically as she folded her arms over her chest.
"Don't be a smart ass. What you did today broke protocol and put your life as well as Reid's life in danger." Dale said through gritted teeth as he leveled a glare at her.
"Dale, come on! You know as well as I do there was no danger." Daisy said tersely as she rolled her eyes at Dale who was struggling to keep his temper in check.
"You didn't know that when you arrived. For all you knew there could have been a heavily armed unsub in that hotel. It doesn't matter, that's not the point; the point is that you didn't think about the potential danger before running into that hotel." Dale snapped his eyes turning into icy pits of anger.
"Daisy we have protocols in place to keep us as safe on the job as possible. If we break those protocols, someone could be hurt or worse killed. We were lucky that the unsub left before you arrived. However, that won't always be the case. I cannot have you breaking protocol and putting yourself and other members of this team in danger. As of this moment you're on desk duty and when the case is over I will review whether you're fit to stay on this team." Hotch said his voice devoid of emotion.
"You're not serious." Daisy snapped jumping out of the chair and slamming her hands down on the desk.
"I'm a 100% serious. We profile as a team and we apprehend as a team. If you can't handle that then you don't belong on this team." Hotch said coldly as he glanced at Dale.
"He's right if you can't stay objective you don't belong on the team because the only thing you're going to do is get yourself or someone else killed." Dale said as he let out a frustrated sigh.
"I'm sorry but as a doctor and a cop I made a promise to myself and the people I serve to protect them from harm. I am going to do whatever it takes to keep that promise protocol be damned. I don't expect either of you to understand." Daisy snapped tears spilling from her eyes as she picked up a family photo and threw it against the wall.
"I do understand. Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to know you're in pain and there's nothing I can do about it?" Dale said tears falling from his own eyes as he picked up the pieces of the broken picture frame and threw them in the trash.
"Your past is what makes you an exceptional agent but it's what's going to eat you alive in this job. I have seen too many good agents burn out because they cannot handle the stress of this job. I don't want to see that happen to you." Hotch said as he watched Daisy wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Just give me another chance because I know this is where I belong." Daisy sniffled as she glanced at both men.
"I will consider it but I can't make any promises." Hotch said softening his gaze a little, as he opened the door. "For now though I'm going to have Adam drive you to the hotel so you can get some rest."
"What about the briefing?" Daisy said pointing towards the conference room.
"I'll fill you in later." Hotch said signalling Adam to come over.
Daisy nodded and let Adam wrap his arm around her shoulders. She groaned in annoyance when she saw a horde of reporters gathered outside the precinct ready to strike like snakes. She felt better when Adam instinctively tightened his grip on her and gave him a half-hearted smile.
As they exited the precinct, Daisy blinked several times as hundreds of flashing camera lights momentarily blinded her. She tried to weasel her way behind Adam to use him as a shield but a reporter blocked her path. She could feel panic sinking its claws into her and she knew Adam could sense her discomfort so she didn't resist when he pulled her against his body so her head was resting on his collarbone. She tilted her head in such a way that Adam was able to shield her eyes from the blinding light with his arm.
"Adam why are you with and FBI Agent?" A reporter said thrusting a mic at him.
"I'm sorry but I can't discuss details of an ongoing investigation so if you'll excuse me I have to get going." Adam said politely making his way to his car parked on the other side of the parking lot.
"So you're saying you're involved with the FBI?" Another reporter said blocking his path.
"I already told you I can't discuss an ongoing investigation now I have to go." Adam said letting his annoyance seep into his voice.
"What can you tell us?" A third reporter said as a cameraman shone his camera light right in Adam's eyes.
Daisy felt her blood boil and forgot about her stage fright as she pushed Adam behind her. She felt her hands clench into fists as she glared straight at the reporter in front of her.
"He can't tell you anything but I can. I can tell you that every one of you needs to let us go before I call my team out here and you're all arrested for impeding a federal investigation." Daisy snapped as she reached for her cuffs. "I'm not kidding if you aren't gone in 10 seconds every one of you is going to jail."
"I would listen to her she really isn't kidding." Adam said seriously.
"1...2...3..." Daisy said not making it to four before the reporters scattered and ran like chickens with their heads cut off to their cars. They drove away so fast that their tires left marks on the asphalt.
Adam unlocked his car and they both got in and put their seat belts on. It only took a few seconds for both of them to break down laughing. Watching the reporters scatter like frightened children was the highlight of their evening.
"Is yelling at reporters one of the perks of being a FBI agent?" Adam said between snorts of laughter as he started the car.
"It certainly is! What fun is it being a FBI Agent if you can't yell at reporters when they get on your last nerve?" Daisy said with a playful smile on her face.
"So what's the story with you and Reid?" Adam said changing the mood of the conversation as he glanced at Daisy, a playful smirk on his face.
"Nothing." Daisy said annoyance becoming clear in her voice.
"Oh no that's not good enough I can tell there's something going on between you two." Adam said firmly.
"He's just a co-worker who's letting me stay with him." Daisy said as she broke eye contact.
Adam shook his head and glared at her in a way that told her he did not buy her answer. Sure, he wasn't a profiler but he was far from stupid and could notice things when he wanted to. They slipped into an awkward silence for five minutes before Daisy broke it because she realized she couldn't hide her feelings for Reid from Adam.
"Reid knows my secret and makes me feel warm inside. I know Reid would never hurt me but I just can't go through the pain again. After all, I thought Jake was a nice person and look what happened. It scares me to tell you the truth." Daisy said looking out the window to avoid eye contact with Adam.
Adam leaned over and snaked a finger under Daisy's chin forcing her to look into his stunning crystal blue eyes.
"You're such a pessimist do you know that? You deserve happiness and I am not taking no for an answer. What if this is karma's way of correcting its mistake of making you suffer for all these years by giving you Reid. Daisy you always turn everything good into something bad and it is not fair to Reid because it is obvious he has feelings for you. I saw the pain in his eyes when you basically blew him off after he showed concern for you and stood up to Hotch for you." Adam said his eyes firm but supportive.
"Oh god I've been a total ass towards him especially after he shared his feelings with me on the plane." Daisy said bitterly.
"What did he say?" You know I need all the dirty little details." Adam said letting the playful smirk return to his features.
"He said: Daisy, I'm really sorry for the pain I've caused you by uncovering your past. I must admit there's something about you that intrigues me. From the moment, you arrived at the BAU I've been feeling things I've never felt before. That's what he said word for word." Daisy said starting to ease up.
"Awww my little Daisy has a crush and its reciprocated, isn't that cute?" Adam said teasingly as he tried to stifle his laughter.
Daisy glared at him before smacking him on the back of the head with her palm, laughing when he looked at her with a mock hurt face.
"Oh come on, Adam, you know you deserved it. Now if we're done sitting here talking about my personal life maybe we should get going." Daisy said unable to hold back a snort of laughter when Adam pouted at her again.
"Yes miss FBI agent." Adam said sarcastically as he pulled the car out of the parking lot and on to the road.
Adam drove for a good 15 minutes before they arrived at the new hotel that he and the rest of the team would be staying at. Adam knew that despite their ribbing there was still a storm simmering in Daisy's eyes. Adam parked the car as close to the entrance as possible and killed the engine before taking his seat belt off. He got out of the car and heard a door slam meaning Daisy had done the same. They remained silent as they walked side by side into the hotel and up to the front desk to get their key cards.
When they made their way over to and entered the elevator Daisy felt her phone vibrate indicating a new text. She pulled her blackberry out of her holster and saw that she did indeed have a new text message.
Hey, Daisy, "The Fisher" and the men escorting him have arrived and are now in your hotel room with me – Garcia
Thanks Garcia for doing this and I will be up in a minute. I just need to make sure Adam does not follow me in to the room. – Daisy
"Who is it?" Adam said trying to peak at her phone.
"It's Garcia; she's just asking if I'm alright after my heated conversation with Dale and Hotch." Daisy replied shoving her phone back into her holster.
Adam smirked deciding to take her word for it despite a nagging feeling that she was lying to him again. He heard a soft ding and watched as the elevator doors opened and shook his head before walking off the elevator, Daisy right on his heels. They walked down the hall way and stopped outside Daisy's room. Daisy gave Adam a hug and gently kissed his cheek before saying goodnight. She watched Adam walk down to the end of the hall and opened his door before disappearing behind it.
When Daisy was sure, Adam was safe in his hotel room she opened the door to her own room and stepped inside. She shut the door she was nearly tackled to the ground by "The Fisher" whom she hadn't seen in a couple of months.
"So what's the plan? When will you reveal The Fisher?" Garcia asked with a smile on her face.
"Tomorrow when Adam least expects it." Daisy said as she hugged Garcia goodnight and watched her leave the room.