You have every right to hate me. I know, I suck. I'm on vacation now so I'm sure there won't be another wait like that. Thanks to those that reviewed recently and made me feel like writing again. I'm sorry it took so long but like I said, I will DEFINITELY be finishing this story and soon. Enjoy.

Chapter 12

"That's not the point, Jack!" Leila cried into the phone. Jack was currently visiting a relative in Georgia otherwise, Leila knew he would be there with her. After almost two hours of discussing the new turn of events, she could feel her temper rising and knew that she should end the conversation before she said something she didn't mean.

"The point is that you both love each other and whatever she's doing, you have to know it's for your own good." Leila huffed, knowing that her boyfriend was right but refusing to acknowledge it.

"Whatever." she mumbled. "I have to go."

"I'll call you tomorrow." she could practically hear the smile in his voice. It aggravated her to no extent. "Love you."

"Uh-huh, me too." Leila shook her head as the sounds of his chuckling could be heard as she lowered the phone from her ear and pressed the 'end' button. Spinning around on her desk chair, she went back to the finishing the work she had missed in today's lecture. A part of her regretted skipping it but she was in no mood to hear about turbidity and zooplankton for three hours after what had transpired between her and her sister the night before. Will had called the house a few times throughout his shift to see how she was doing but she continued to give him the cold shoulder as well. After all, not only was he no help but he even went as far as to agree with JJ. Leila scoffed at the thought, trying hard to push her anger to the back of her mind just long enough for her sister to come home. Then, she'd have no problem resuming the discussion and making sure she got her points across no matter what. With a tight smile, she assured herself that the faster she finished the assignments, the faster JJ would come through the front door and be greeted with an vast array of arguments as well as a few colorful words Leila had already decided on.

—

They weren't doing enough!

Panic flooded his system as the machines around her began to wail loudly. Clenching and unclenching his fists inside his pockets, he watched as several doctors and nurses crowded around her, most of their gowns splattered with her blood.

This is all your fault!

He couldn't help the tears as they raced down his cheeks. Not bothering to wipe them away, he held his breath as one of the men in white brought the paddles to her chest. One burst. Two bursts. Still, she remained completely still.

Completely dead.

Staring intently at the machine that monitored her heart rate, he began softly hitting his head against the wall to his left. As the monitor remained flat, he started banging harder, barely feeling the pain as he caught a quick glance of her face. A tube protruded from her mouth in a terrifying angle and her golden hair covered some of her face. He watched her pale hand fall slightly to the side and waited for her fingers to curl. They didn't.

"Sir," a voice called. He ignored it. "Sir, are you alright?" A woman in white, most likely a nurse, was at his side watching him hit his head progressively harder against the wall. She grabbed hold of the back of his head and called for help. Realizing that he had been seen, he wriggled from her grasp and sprinted out of sight.

You fucking idiot! So stupid! Your fault!

As he ran, he continued to smack his hands against his head, spots of blood appearing on his palms from the wound he had caused moments before.

Dead. She's dead. What do I do? What do I do now?

The thoughts wouldn't stop coming, all telling him that her death was his fault but a part of him resisted.

Not my fault! I didn't want to hurt her! She shouldn't have run from me. I loved her!

Ignoring the hot tears as they continued to stream down his face, he got into the car he had stolen and flew out out of the hospital parking lot, almost taking a sign and several pedestrians with him.

They'll pay. All of them. I'll make them pay.

"Don't worry, JJ." Jeremy spoke aloud for the first time since the accident. "I'll make sure they get what they deserve for keeping us a part. All of them."

—

"Is JJ in yet?" Emily asked from over her desk. Reid shrugged while Morgan leaned back in his chair and offered her a raised eyebrow.

"Why, you got a baby question?" Emily raised her own in return, crossing her arms with a smirk.

"Would you prefer I asked you if I did?" the brunette's jest caused the younger profiler to falter. She chuckled at the expression on his face.

"No, I haven't seen her yet." Morgan finally answered. He saw his partner momentarily frown but thought nothing of it. Just then, Hotch emerged from his office and practically ran to Rossi's. Only Emily seemed to notice and her interest peaked when she saw the two men whispered intensely. Before long, they began to approach the bullpen and she drew the attention of her remaining two colleagues.

"Hotch hasn't looked that pissed since…" Morgan stopped to think.

"Since Parilla." Emily and Reid finished for him. At the mention of the man, all three tensed and looked at one another. As Hotch and Rossi approached them, they stood immediately and waited for either one to speak. Reid beat them to it.

"Where's JJ?" he asked, his voice small like a child's. Rossi lowered his gaze while Hotch visibly steeled himself for what he was about to say.

"She's dead."

—

Emily ran a hand through her straightened hair as she paced on the LaMontangue's porch. She had been standing there for almost fifteen minutes, terrified of knocking on the door. She knew that Leila was alone in the house and guessed that it was for the best. She could only imagine what the teens reaction would be. Emily readied herself, sucking in a deep breath, and ringing the doorbell. After several minutes of waiting, Emily frowned. She called out Leila's name as she knocked on the glass. Hearing nothing in response, Emily's mind raced. Did she know? Was she hurt? Or worse: had Parilla gotten to her? Hand on her hip, Emily tested the knob and saw that it was open. A slight wave of panic washed over her at the thought of what happened to JJ- to her friend. Forcing back the tears that still needed to be shed, she rushed into the house, gun raised. Almost immediately after entering, Emily heard a door closing further into the house. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest as she experienced a fear she couldn't remember feeling in another other hostile situation. Her step faltered as her thoughts went to the little life she was carrying and the lack of body armor she was wearing and a part of her wanted nothing more than to run out and call for help. Startled out of her thoughts as another door opened and closed, Emily swallowed the almost crippling fear and pressed forward. As she turned a corner sharply, she heard a brief scream and saw Leila drop the basket of laundry she was carrying. Emily immediately lowered her weapon, relief flooding her entire body like never before, and raised her hands in a defensive manner.

"I'm sorry!" she cried. "I rang and knocked but you didn't answer and I just got worried."

"It's fine, it's cool." Leila reassured the woman as she took out her earbuds and pressed a hand to her chest, feeling her rapidly beating heart.

"I'm really sorry, Leila." Emily almost smacked her own forehead but Leila offered her a small, humorless smile as she squeezed the older woman's shoulder.

"Really, it's ok." she said softly. "I understand why you got worried."

"You really shouldn't leave the door unlocked." Emily scolded her. "Especially now." Leila was already nodding.

"I know, I know."

"I mean it, Leila. It's dangerous." Emily's voice almost broke. Thankfully, Leila didn't catch it.

"Look at you going all 'mom' on me." she playfully slapped the agent's shoulder. "I mean if that kid is anything like you, you're gonna need a lot of-"

"Leila there's something I need to tell you." Emily interrupted, her hand waving away whatever joke the girl was about to say. At the seriousness in her tone, Leila's grin dissipated within seconds. Her eyes rapidly searched Emily for any sign of what she was going to say but she knew it couldn't be good.

"What is it?" she asked, her voice smaller than she had ever heard. Deep down, Emily was sure that Leila knew what she was going to say. The older brunette positioned herself closer as she opened her mouth to say the words that would forever remind her of the taste of vinegar.

"Leila," it took all of her willpower to hold the girl's gaze. Her voice low and soft, Emily could hardly believe she was saying the words aloud. "JJ's dead."

"What?" the shock on Leila's face was evident. All color from her once tanned cheeks had faded as she let her phone drop to the ground with a thud. Her eyes were wide and already filling with tears as the her mind decoded the phrase. Suddenly, she was falling, her body weighing more than she could bear. Emily expected this and reached out for her, slowing her descent to the ground and allowing herself to fall with her. Leila grabbed onto Emily's shoulders as she knelt in front of her, her eyes begging her to take it back. But she knew there was no going back. JJ was dead. Her sister was dead. Her only real family was gone and it was all her fault. As Emily watched the turmoil unfold on the girl's face, she couldn't help but shed her own tears at the sight. She could almost feel Leila's pain as if it were her own- after all, she too had lost a sister.

"I'm so sorry, Leila." Emily whispered, her hands stroking soothing circles on the girl's arms. "He found her in the parking lot of a grocery store and-and he had a knife." Emily watched as silent tears rolled down Leila's face, her head lowered as the grip on her shoulders tightened. "We don't know exactly how it happened yet but we will. We'll get him, Leila, I swear it."

"No." the girl shook her head slowly, almost zombie-like. "You won't." Emily pulled her closer, pressing the trembling teenager against her chest, as the two cried. She could faintly hear Leila's sobs as her tears stained her blouse and she shut her eyes tightly, desperate to be anywhere but here.

"It's going to be alright." Emily promised. "We're going to make it better." She whispered words of encouragement and strength against Leila's ear as she laid a gentle kiss to the top of her head but the teen heard nothing. The blood rushing behind her ears and the thoughts that ran through her mind were the only things she could understand.

You didn't say you loved her back.

She thought you hated her.

This is all your fault.

You made her leave early.

You made her take you in.

He was after you- not her.

This is all your fault.

You should've never been born.

"I wish I was never born." Leila found herself mumbling against Emily's shoulder. She felt the older woman stiffen as she said it but couldn't bring herself to regret the words. It was true. As her heart tugged, ripped and opened, Leila could think of nothing but how she wanted nothing more than to be dead- to have never existed. The tears came easily, the outright cries even more so and before long, Leila found herself exhausted and dried out. She allowed herself to lean against Emily and close her eyes. As the agent stroked her hair and rocked her, Leila soon fell into a light, restless sleep against the woman's chest. Emily was sure her heart was breaking as she eased them against the wall and cradled Leila like a child. Even in her sleep, the girl was still crying and Emily couldn't help but continue to cry with her. She didn't deserve this. No one deserved this. As she watched Leila fall asleep, she swore that even if it was the last thing she did, she would avenge what Jeremy Parilla had done to this family- to her family.