Chapter 17

Cavil had fallen asleep, curled up in a chair that was much too small for her tall frame, minutes after recounting the past four months. JJ listened intently, eager to learn how Leila was doing. It didn't take long for the former FBI agent to feel crushing guilt for what she had been forced to do to her sister. JJ never wanted to fake her death and she especially didn't want to lie to Leila about it. It was the rest of the team that convinced her it was the only thing to do. With her "dead", Parilla would undoubtedly come for Leila next. If and when he found her, Leila needed to be able to convince him that JJ was, indeed, gone if she had any hope of surviving. The older Jareau had cried for hours over the decision, holding Emily's hand as they went over everything the brunette would have to say to the girl. Thankfully, she had been permitted to tell Will and Henry that she was alright but it was of little consolation when she heard Amy describe just how her death had affected her sister. If the Marshal was to be believed, Leila barely slept or ate and blamed herself for JJ's passing. It was more than she could bear to hear. Before long, she stopped the woman and left the room long enough for her to finish telling her account to Wells. When Wells found her, he brought her back to the small conference room the hospital had allowed them to use, insisting that they stay together at least until the BAU arrived. Now, three hours later, he received a call from Hotch telling him that they had landed and were on their way to the hospital. JJ was antsy, both eager and scared to see her team for the first time in almost five months. She missed them desperately but was afraid of how they would treat her now that Leila was missing. Her fears were dismissed almost immediately after laying eyes on them.

"JJ!" she heard a woman cry and recognized the voice immediately. Spinning on her heels, she saw Emily running towards her, holding a slightly protruding belly. JJ broke into a grin for the first time since the day Parilla attacked her as she met the woman halfway and wrapped her arms around her tightly.

"Oh, Em." She cried into the taller woman's shoulder. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too, JJ. More than I can ever explain." Emily felt tears forming in her eyes and, for the millionth time, cursed her overly sensitive hormones. When the two parted, JJ's eyes went to her belly as did her hands. The former blonde stared at her, wide eyed, as she tried to grow accustomed to the sight of a pregnant Emily Prentiss.

"Emily, you look amazing." She said genuinely, feeling the woman squeeze her arms in response. "Do you know the gender?" Emily shook her head.

"We figured we'd leave it a surprise." She said. As the two women hugged once more, JJ opened her eyes and saw the rest of her team approaching. She hugged each of them as tightly as she could, quickly wiping at the tears that began to fall down her cheeks as she did.

"I've missed you all so much." She admitted, swiping a hand through her hair in an attempt to get it out of her eyes. This new haircut was certainly not for her.

"I gotta say, Sunshine," Morgan grinned, "I think I prefer you as a blonde."

"I don't know," Emily rustled the shorter locks, "I kinda like it."

"Remind you of your goth days, does it Princess?" Morgan asked jokingly, earning himself a punch in the arm. The others chuckled at his expense before following JJ to the room she had previously occupied. After getting the BAU up to speed and introducing them to the now awake Agent Cavil, they began to form a plan to find and catch Parilla.

"We know he has Leila," Hotch explained, "but we have to assume that he'll stick to his regular pattern."

"Which means he'll need another woman." Emily continued his train of thought. "A blonde."

"Correct." Hotch agreed.

"What if he doesn't?" Reid questioned. "What if, since he thinks JJ's dead, he doesn't need someone to replace her?"

"I don't believe he'll just give up on his fantasy." Rossi chimed in. "He's wanted her for so long, it wouldn't be easy to get him to deviate from his delusion." JJ squirmed in her chair, uncomfortable despite knowing that they couldn't help talking about her like they would a victim.

"I agree with Rossi." She added. "He hasn't taken anyone that we know of since I 'died' because he's been too busy looking for Leila. The only logical path would be to kidnap a blonde to act as my surrogate just like before. Realistically, he'd want me to be there to witness what he does to her. When he attacked me, he said that I'd be seeing her soon."

"Right." Hotch thought out loud. "We'll need to keep an eye out on missing persons updates in the area. Unfortunately, we don't know where he's planning on taking Leila. Just because he found her here, doesn't mean he was prepared to hold her in New Mexico. For all we know, he's taken her back to his comfort zone."

"Then we should do what we did last time." Morgan reasoned. "Search his past for any connections to properties, particularly in the New York/New Jersey area."

"Get on the phone with Garcia and have her run a search." Hotch ordered. "Have her look into his alias as well. We need to know how long he's had it and what he's done under that name." Morgan left the room to make the call. "Rossi, Reid, coordinate with the locals and see if they have any missing persons that match what we're looking for. I want hourly updates on any new ones that come in. Also have them run a search for the SUV he was driving. Agent Cavil's already given them that information. Emily, we need the surveillance videos from the rest stop Parilla saw them at. Also check to see if there were any on the roads they took, particularly the one where the accident took place." While everyone dispersed to complete their tasks, JJ approached her old boss with a questioning look.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked, already anticipating the answer he would give her.

"JJ," he began, "you're far too close to this. I really think you should go back to wherever Agent Wells had you and let us handle this."

"You know there's no way that's happening." The woman crossed her arms. "No offense to you or to the Marshals, but we tried it your way. I did everything everyone asked of me and he still got her. Now, I'm staying and I'm helping you find my sister or I'll do what I did last time and go off on my own. It's your call." The two stared each other down, Agents Cavil and Wells exchanging awkward glances with one another as they waited. Hotch eventually gave in, knowing the risks of JJ leaving the relative safety of their company.

"Fine." He conceded. "You can stay and help but you're not getting anywhere near him until we bring him in." JJ scoffed, undoubtedly at the 'bring him in' comment, before Hotch gave her a warning look.

"Sure, Hotch." She nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"Go and help Emily." The Unit Chief said, knowing that she wouldn't want to be paired with anyone else. Wells shot the man a concerned look as JJ left, clearly not convinced that this was a good idea. When the door shut, he opened his mouth to voice his opinion only to be stopped by the woman behind him.

"I wouldn't try to stop her if I were you." Amy spoke for the first time in hours. "I've known that woman for about five minutes but if she's anything like her sister, then she meant what she said about doing this on her own. We both read the file." She raised an eyebrow at Wells. "You know what happened last time she did that."

"I suppose you're right." Wells grudgingly admitted. "I just don't see how any good can come of her getting involved."

"She's already involved." Hotch sighed. "The best we can do is help find Leila and try to hold JJ back when we do."

"That didn't work out too well last time." Wells reminded the man who shot him a cold glare. Hotch needed no reminder of what occurred last time they had encountered Parilla. The Unit Chief left the room, phone out to arrange his team's hotel situation, without a word.

"Nice one." Amy mumbled as she walked past him. Wells couldn't help but grin at her back, holding the door for the injured woman and receiving an annoyed look in return. Despite the horrid feeling at the pit of his stomach, Agent Wells was glad that another Marshal was included in the investigation. It didn't hurt that she was one of the prettiest women he had ever seen before either. Shaking the thought out of his head, Wells trotted after the woman.

"How about I help you procure some real clothes and a bed?" The sentence was out of his mouth before he realized how it sounded. Amy frowned slightly.

"I've never heard of a man offering those things at the same time, so sure, why not?" The woman ran a hand through her hair, embarrassed of the joke as soon as she said it. A part of her had forgotten that Adam was gone and as she remembered, she felt nothing but sadness and regret. Wells took notice and lamented his statement for a whole new reason.

"I'm sorry." He said softly. "I didn't mean for it to come off as-"

"It's fine." Amy was quick to wave away his concern. "Adam…he's gone and I'm just going to have to get used to that."

"We're going to get him." Wells tried to comfort her. "I know JJ and she won't stop until that man is in the ground. They won't admit it around us but they want him dead more than anything. Trust me." Amy looked up at the man's soft eyes and offered him a small smile. Even though they had just met, she could tell that he cared.

"I do." She admitted, tilting her head as she noticed the different shades of green in his eyes.

"Let's get you those clothes, shall we?" Wells led the woman towards the exit, keen to get her into something she felt comfortable in and regroup with the BAU. Hopefully, they could be of use, redeem their agency, and, in the process, take down a psychopath.