Morgan refilled his cup and headed back to Garcia's room. He ignored the team huddled in the waiting room; he wasn't ready for another confrontation with Hotch he just needed to be near her and the quiet of her hospital room.

They still hadn't heard anything about Blake; she didn't look good when he and Hotch had found her lying on the floor. She had lost a lot of blood and her body felt cool to his touch. He didn't want to lose another team member he couldn't accept Kirkwood winning again. He'd lived free for the last fifteen years without being held accountable for the deaths of 24 innocent women. He couldn't convince his superiors that his brother Antoine was not acting alone; but he knew it in his gut that there were two not one. The case had haunted him even after leaving the Chicago PD and joining the bureau; the thought of someone getting away with murder didn't sit well with him.

She smiled when he entered the room. JJ true to her word had stayed with her while he'd gone to take a break. The two girl friends watched him as he approached and stood on the opposite side of the bed taking her hand in his and leaning down to plant a soft kiss on her lips. JJ looked surprised at her two friends they'd kept their relationship a secret until now with no public displays like this. Everyone had whispered and wondered behind their backs but there had been no admissions of anything except friendship. He'd come too close to losing her and now it didn't matter to him what anyone thought.

"Hey."

"Hey yourself." She answered back softly.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up but…"

"Shh…" She interrupted. "I know you've been here all the time. Besides, JJ's been here to keep me company."

"Thank you JJ."

"That's what family does."

"You haven't missed anything. I just opened my eyes."

JJ noticed that the two of them were doing that thing they do. The thing that makes everyone around them disappear whenever they were together. She cleared her throat and stood to leave.

"I think I'll head to the waiting room to see if there's been any word on Alex."

"Thanks JJ." Garcia said.

"I'm just glad you're alright. You scared the hell out of us."

JJ paused and looked at her friends before she stepped into the hallway and headed to the waiting room to join the rest of the team. She shared Morgan's sentiment; she couldn't bear losing another team member they had already gone through too much.

"How are you feeling, Baby Girl?"

"Other than a killer headache I'm fine, Handsome."

"Good. The doctor says you can go home tomorrow."

"I feel fine. I want to go home now."

"You're going to do what the doctor says. No taking chances."

He moved and sat on the side of her bed watching her trying to find the words that he needed to say but he couldn't.

"Talk to me."

She hadn't seen that look in his eyes before, terror and fear…anger. She knew he would have trouble with this even though he had saved them again. She knew him better than anyone and he was haunted by what his life had given him, what they did for a living and the fact the he had allowed himself to fall in love. He had confided in her that his biggest fear was that his love for her would be used against him; used to hurt her and so he had resisted them and now his worst nightmare had almost come true today.

She gently took his hand and squeezed it. He looked away from her and at their joined hands gently rubbing his thumb across the back of hers. His tears fell one by one down his face. He couldn't stop them and he wasn't sure if he wanted to. He spent so much time being hard, strong and he was exhausted. It felt good to just cry he felt lighter and he could breathe for the first time in a long time.

"Derek, talk to me."

Waiting Room –

The team had been waiting for over five hours on word about Alex. They knew it was bad but the doctors had rushed her to surgery when she was brought in. Her husband was out of the country and so far no one had been able to reach him. He was on assignment in some deep hidden region of the world working as a part of Doctors Without Borders; a noble cause but damn inconvenient during a family emergency.

"Alex Blake?" A voice sounded from the doorway.

They watched as a dark haired-man dressed in scrubs entered the room.

"Yes." Hotch said.

"My name is Dr. Neil Punjab. I'm Dr. Blake's surgeon.

"How is she?"

"She made it through surgery better than we had anticipated. She lost a lot of blood."

"Is she going to be alright?" Reid asked.

"We were able to repair the internal injuries and I think she will recover with time."

"Can we see her?"

"She's in Intensive Care now. She's still unconscious but if you want to see her please don't stay long."

"Thank you doctor."

Home of Mabel Henry -

Mabel arrived home preoccupied with thoughts of revenge. It was up to her now to do what her poor dim-witted nephews could not. In all fairness, the two were out of their league, no match for someone like Derek Morgan. She was her own last chance to make things right and she wasn't going to fail.

Mabel entered her kitchen and filled her kettle with water and turned on the stove. She was exhausted and disappointed; she'd envisioned herself sitting down for a victory dinner instead she was going to be making funeral arrangements tomorrow.

She grabbed her tea from the cupboard and placed a bag in a small teacup. She loved tea it just seemed to relax and calm her nerves. She had quite a collection of teas; exotic, medicinal and special purpose teas. She inhaled the aroma as the orange spice tea wafted upward toward the ceiling.

"Agent Morgan looked so tired." She thought to herself. "Hmm…I'm sure a nice cup of tea would do the trick."

She rummaged through her collection and found an old box of tea. She hadn't used it in years it was for special occasions. She opened the box and took a whiff of the pungent leaves.

"Yes, a strong cup of my special tea should do the trick…just what the dashing agent Morgan needs…"

She smiled closed her eyes and took a nice long sip of her hot brew.