Chpt. 38
"What do we say to the Lord of Death?"
"Not today." (George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones)
"She is one of God's women fashioned by His own hand to show us men and other women that there is a heaven where we can enter, and that its light can be here on earth." (Bram Stoker, Dracula)
Hotch left Strauss' office, riding the elevator back to the correct floor for the BAU. As he exited the elevator and entered the bull-pen, Morgan looked up seeing the change in him already.
"Hotch, everything alright?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact. Things are better than they have been in weeks."
Morgan followed hot on Hotch's heels; yes, women were bad to gossip, that's common knowledge, so Morgan couldn't be blamed when he wanted to get one up on the females of the BAU.
Hotch was about to shut the door to his office, but realized that it would be next to impossible with Morgan coming through about the same time.
"That's what you're going to try to leave me with? Things are better than they have been in weeks. Really? Elaborate please."
Hotch was still grinning like a fool, 'Alecta….she called. They are in Istanbul. She's had the babies. I got to see them over video call; she let me see them….told me their names and everything." He pulled out his phone and showed Morgan the pictures he'd been able to save from the call.
"Hotch, I thought she was only supposed to have twins."
"Yes, well, the one little girl was hidden by the other two. She was an added bonus."
"How is she doing?"
"She's tired. She was telling me that she spent a couple of weeks in Ireland around the time she buried the girls, Moira and Cinnamon. She decided to take some time and just do Ireland; but she said she could never really relax, because she couldn't let go of the girls. Everywhere she went, something would remind her of them.
And then when she got to Russian and people start shooting at her….And then she said yesterday afternoon she had the babies, and then her friends have moved her to some fortress for protection. I don't know much about the fortress, but she says she loves it there. I told her that I plan on coming to see her as soon as I possibly can."
"Hotch…."
"Hot Stuff, can you come help me?" Garcia peeked around the door jamb of Hotch's office.
"Alright Baby Girl, I'll be right there."
"Now."
"Wait, what were you going to tell me?"
"Hotch, I have to borrow him for a second, please."
Hotch didn't fail to miss the guilty look on Garcia's face.
"Penelope."
Dropping her eyes to the floor, 'Yes, sir."
"What's going on?"
"I just really need Morgan's help."
"Ok; now, try the truth."
"I know who took the shots at Alecta in Russia."
"Who?"
"Boss man…."
Hotch was trying desperately to keep himself under control; one busted lip from Morgan was enough to remind him to watch his tone around Garcia. Pen must have noticed she was treading on thin ice.
"Fine. It was Sergei and Yuri."
"What?!"
"Alecta doesn't have a clue who it was. I only know because Immogene is a sniper, and she took shots at them….she saw them in her scope. She managed to kill Sergei, but only injured Yuri. She's had me digging around for any information as to Why they would do this….considering it is sooo out of character for what we have seen of them."
"Where is Yuri now?"
"Sir, I don't know. I've been merely focusing on the background information and other things like that. Immogene has someone else that she knows looking into his current location."
"You call her and tell her I want to know what the hell is going on. I've put one of her husbands in his grave for hurting her, I am not afraid to do it again."
"Y-Yes sir."
Realizing how….angry he had sounded, 'Garcia….thank you, and I'm sorry if I was out of line."
"Anytime sir, we all miss her."
Derek jumped in quickly, 'Especially Reid, he's been having a tough time of it."
"I'll check in with him and see how he is."
"Thanks Boss Man. It might make him feel a little bit better."
Garcia went back to her lair to work some more on getting some of the paperwork from previous cases digitized as well as doing some more digging on that dirt bag Yuri. Everyone knew how much Alecta had loved him. Other than Kevin, she had loved Yuri best. When they found him, pacifist that Garcia was, she would do her best to claw his eyeballs out for real. If Hotch didn't kill him she would. She was so sick of seeing people do this to Alecta…Alecta gave and gave until a normal person would just….break. Alecta would protect anybody at all cost. She lost her sanity for God's sake, when she thought Yuri and the kids had died. For all of that suffering that she went through, Garcia knew that somebody had to pay, and pay dearly.
She thought more about what Reid had said the night before about Yuri not being who or what everyone thought he was; and that was where she chose to begin. She took his full name as she knew it and she ran down everything that might be related to a credit card in his name, major purchases, phone bills, etc. If there was so much as a scrap of information, his name scribbled on some bar napkin, she was going to damn well find it.
The trick was, Yuri Vsevolodovich didn't exist beyond twenty years ago. Yuri was a man that was pushing 50, he was a few years older than Alecta, but yet his identity under that name didn't exist beyond 20 years ago….that would have been right around the time that he would have started working for Impatiev, well, approximately anyway. Using pictures that she had filched of Yuri, she ran facial recognition software and all sorts of searches on various databases…..Lucky she was the queen of the tech world and had a shit ton of computers to work from.
As her computers did the hard work, she placed a call to Immogene to tell her what she had found and how she had come to the idea in the first place.
"You tell that darling doctor friend of yours that I owe him a kiss when I see him."
"I don't think the blush would ever leave that boy's face. And he would likely never stop rambling and stuttering. Go for it, I would love to see him at a complete loss for words, in a positive way, for a change. Wait a second….."
"What is it Pen?"
"My babies are going freaking crazy. They have found Yuri's real identity!"
"Who is he?"
"Slobodan Stanislav; apparently he is a Serbian national. His father is Viktor Stanislav, mother is Mirjana. I am getting more information on his father's activities. I will forward it to you, where can I reach you?"
"The fortress, Rumelihisarı. Do you have that information?"
Garcia double checked her contact list, "Yes; be waiting, I'm sending you everything as it comes to me."
"Thank you. Something about that name, Viktor Stanislav, is familiar to me, but I cannot place it just now. I will look at everything as soon as I get it."
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Immogene gave Pen a few minutes to send her the information about Viktor Stanislav and his sons, Slobodan and Grigor (who up to now had been known as Sergei). None of the information was good.
"Son of a Bitch!" Immogene reacted poorly when she read the list of things that Viktor Stanislav was alleged to have taken part in.
"What is it girl?" Mac came quickly to her side.
"I knew that I recognized this name! Viktor Stanislav is the man that murdered Impatiev's sister all those years ago!"
"What?"
"Ok, Yuri and Sergei took shots at us at the air strip in Russia…..Follow me here."
"Yes."
"I had Pen look up anything that she could find on the brothers. Yuri and Sergei Vsevlodovich didn't exist until about 20 years ago. Before that they were Slobodan and Grigo Stanislav; Serbian nationals, war criminals…..Their father is Viktor Stanislav also wanted on charges of war crimes. He started his career with whatever rebel movement when he was in his late teens or early 20's; it was during this time that some of the rebels began moving into parts of Russia and dong their dead level best to exterminate the local population, a sort of ethnic cleansing. Impatiev would have been a boy, only about 10 at the time. And he watched what they did to his sister, Yasmina.
All this time, Alecta had thought he was this innocent little old Russian man, Kazimir Vsevlodovich."
Mac grabbed his cell phone to quickly place a call; he was trying to call Impatiev and warn him. He should have called him first thing after the shooting happened, but he had to deliver some babies.
"Damn!"
"Mac, what's wrong?"
"Impatiev's phone is ringing out, going to voice mail. I can't reach him."
"I'll try Istvan."
As Immogene made the call to Istvan, Mac began trying to call some of the other associates that they knew Impatiev to have.
"I can't get Istvan." Immogene sounded truly worried then. Istvan was like a human wall, some sort of gargoyle, which sat at the door to Impatiev's Tea Room. You didn't get to the old man unless you went through him. He was handsome in his way, much more friendly than his appearance let on, but when it came to the safety of those that he cared about he was all business. Istvan was not a man to be trifled with. If Impatiev wasn't responding to phone calls and neither was Istvan, this couldn't be good news.
Immgene was also a bit worried because Istvan was also her….boyfriend….she supposed you could call him. They had never made anything really solid. They had never labeled it. But neither one of them dated other people anymore. And she loved nothing better than seeing him happy. The fact that she couldn't reach him now, in such a bad time, worried her a bit.
Damn it, damn it, damn it! Immogene had tried four times to get Istvan on the phone and nothing was working; and she knew for a fact that he would not ignore her call twice, let alone four times, not if he recognized her number.
Next she decided to call her other contact to find out where Yuri disappeared to after the shooting in Russia.
As she dialed that number, Mac told her that he hadn't been able to get ahold of anyone yet. The cell numbers were either ringing out, like Impatiev's or they were going straight to voice mail as if the phones had been turned off.
Immogene's friend from her days in MI-6 picked up the phone and she asked them what information they had for her and whatever it was couldn't be good.
"You have got to be kidding me!"
"No ma'am. He's in Quantico, Virginia. I can tell you what he bought recently from his credit card activity. There was a shovel, some rope, duct tape, a gas can, a few guns, some ammo…..Ma'am, I may be wrong, but I think he's about to start some shit."
"Thank you for the Intel, I'll get back to you if I need anything." With that Immogene quickly hung up her phone and called Simon.
"Immogene, to what do I owe this honor?"
"Simon, you have to get Hotch and the others the hell out of Quantico as soon as possible. Bring them here, to Rumelihisarı."
"What's going on?"
"Just bring them; I can explain everything once they are all here. I mean, Hotch, the rest of the team, their kids. Do it now. Please."
"But of course."
Simon got off the phone with Immogene and immediately dashed off to go to the federal building. Once he got there he encountered the security officers.
"I need to be escorted to the BAU please, I have something important to discuss with Agent Hotchner."
"Is he expecting you?"
"Well, no…."
"Then you will have to empty your pockets…."
"My good man I don't really have time for all of this." With that Simon raised his right hand to the man's left temple gently, and immediately the man sank to the floor, unconscious…not dead, just…..basically asleep. As the other security officers came closer, Simon turned to them opening his left hand and blowing on it as if he was blowing dust out of his palm, though there was nothing there. The rest of the security team that had come to him all collapsed as the first man did, in a deep sleep.
"Right…..now, where was I?" Simon looked over the booth looking for something that would list what floor the BAU might be on, finding it he made his way to the elevator. There were no further interruptions after the security guard.
Once on the correct floor, Simon looked around until he found the huge glass doors that lead to the bull-pen. Finding them he went in straightaway.
Agent Anderson was the first person to notice him; a man in the bull-pen without a security tag?
"Can I help you sir?"
"Yes, I need to speak with Agent Hotchner, immediately." Something in Simon's eyes caused Anderson to behave accordingly.
"His office is just up those stairs, his door is the one a little to the left."
"Thank you."
As Simon made his way towards the steps of the bull-pen, Morgan noticed him.
"Simon? What's going on?"
"Agent Morgan, I need you and the others to come with me now. I have to get Agent Hotchner and Agent Rossi. Is there somewhere we can talk privately? There is something the team should know."
"I'll get the others together in the conference room and meet you there."
"Very good. I will be there in moment."
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Aaron Hotchner had been in his office discussing with Rossi about some of his upcoming plans. He had enough sick time built up to choke an elephant; he intended to cash in part of that and take Jack with him to Istanbul to see Alecta.
Suddenly there was a knock at his office door, both Hotch and Rossi looked up, noticing Simon standing there.
"Simon, is there something wrong?"
Hotch had grown fond of the odd man; he was strange, but he seemed harmless enough. Having Simon around was one of the few things that still brought a smile to Jack's face very much at all.
"Yes, sir, actually there is. If the two of you would kindly join the others in the….the um….your conference room, I will explain there."
Hotch and Rossi both stood, exiting the office and leading Simon to the room. Once everyone was seated, Rossi broke the quiet….of course he did.
"What is it old man, what seems to be the problem?"
"Well as many of you are becoming aware, Alecta made a mad dash around the world to bury some friends, and visit some family. Once she made it to Russia, she and her little group were shot at by none other than her resurrected husband, Yuri and his brother Sergei. Immogene was able to get off enough of a good shot that she killed Sergei, but she was only able to wing Yuri a bit I'm afraid."
"Why would….?" Emily started.
"Please, bear with me. Immogene had your friend Penelope do some research for her. As it turns out Yuri isn't quite who he says he is."
Penelope began passing out copies of the information that she had gathered.
"You have got to be kidding me," was Morgan's only reply.
Rossi couldn't wrap his brain around it all.
"You mean to tell me that Viktor Stanislav is one of the worst war criminals since probably Hitler and his Nazis?"
"Yes, quite plainly. Yes. And as of right now we are having a devil of a time contacting Impatiev and Istvan. Neither one of them have been heard from in days. We can't get ahold of any of their known associates. As far as the two of them go, we are flying blind on where they are or if they are even in one piece."
"I can trace any cell or credit card activity for like the past two weeks and see what I turn up…" Penelope offered.
"Would you please? That would be ever so lovely of you." Everyone watched as Garcia jumped up and made a dash back to her lair to get started, calling Kevin in for an extra set of eyes. "Immogene has got her feelers out everywhere. Some of them are arresting the rest of Yuri's family, his parents included, as we speak. I must warn you, Alecta knows nothing of these developments. Immogene and Mac have not told her who the shooters were or anything else. This would crush her….just crush her.
She loved Yuri so desperately, and his family. She was quite fond of the old man. She adored him. And if she were to find out what he had done in his former life….and that he had been the one to kill Impatiev's sister…..and all this time she….
I've been sent here because Mac and Immogene actually fear for the safety of everyone here. I have called a few friends in for some help. You all have an hour and a half. You will go home, pack some clothes for you, your spouses, and your children. Provisions are being made for your pets. I am to collect you and take you to Istanbul; to Rumelihisari…It's a fortress on the mouth of the Bosphorus. It's where Alecta and her children are now. For our purposes, this is one of the safest places in the world for you now."
"Henry has school…."
"Madam, I hate to sound…No actually I don't. If you do not do this, Yuri will surely come after you or anyone on this team. He will do whatever is necessary to draw Alecta out. Trust me when I say that he has no problem killing women and children. He learned everything he knows from his father. And I hope you understand what I mean when I say that he would take his time with you."
"Is there anything else that you can tell us?" Prentiss asked.
Simon tossed some pictures on the table. They were pictures of some of the team.
"He's here, in Quantico, and he's been a busy boy."
Morgan looked at the pictures; some of them were taken the other night when Reid came home with him and Garcia. There were a couple of Rossi with Mrs. King, a few more of JJ and her family….some of Prentiss and the girls together. And the most chilling of all were a few of Hotch with Jack at soccer practice.
"I have little choice but to take you with me, don't you see? She cares for you all in one form or another and he will use that to his advantage. And I for one believe that she has lost entirely too much lately."
Hotch spoke for everyone, 'We'll come along, no arguments."
The others all nodded and agreed verbally. Even if they didn't care about their own personal safety, they had children or spouses to think about and none of them had ever bargained for this.
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Hotch was escorted by Simon himself first, to Jessica's house to pick up Jack, and then to his own home to pack a few things. He let Jessica know that he had to take Jack with him for at least a few days, that there was an emergency, and that they were going to meet up with Alecta while they were gone.
"Daddy, really! We're going to see her?"
Hotch was in the car, Simon riding shotgun, Jack in the back seat.
"Yes, buddy. She called earlier today and told me how much she missed you and me, mostly you….and I thought we could take a trip and go see her to make her feel better. I know how much you've missed her lately."
"I have daddy, I have. Hey, Mr. Simon, can you help me get some of my books packed? I need to take some that she can read to me….and some other things, too."
"Yes, Master Jack, I will help you."
"Thank you!"
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Once JJ got home she took a few brief minutes to explain to Will what was going on and what needed to happen now.
"Well let's go darlin','Will drawled.
"You're ok with this?"
"I have to be. It's not an ideal situation, but neither is just sittin' here waiting to die; I don't think I could bear seeing something happen to you or to Henry. If these people say this is the only way, then we need to go."
Suddenly she felt alright about things; together, they could deal with it all.
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Prentiss had her own escort to her apartment. While she packed a few things, she called her mother to tell her she would be out of town and likely unreachable for a few days. One of the escorts promised that she would have Prentiss' cat, Sergio, taken care of.
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Rossi arrived at his home; Mrs. King was sitting, curled up on the sectional sofa sketching. She was a remarkable amateur artist really, just like her mother before her, as well as her daughter and granddaughter. He explained that they had a line on where Alecta was and briefly hit on some of the details of what was happening and that they needed to get some things together so they could go be with Alecta now. Mrs. King for once didn't argue or ask questions, she simply rose from her seat all but dragging Rossi behind her up the stairs.
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Garcia and Morgan had arrived at their apartment with their escorts and began packing immediately; once they were nearly finished, Morgan began turning over care of Clooney to one of their handlers.
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As Reid entered his apartment, a thought struck him.
"What about my mother? She's in a…..mental hospital in Las Vegas."
"Doctor Reid, we are aware. She has 24 hour protection until this is all over. Would you like to call her for a moment?"
"Could I? It might make me feel better about all of this."
"Certainly."
Reid picked up his cell phone and placed the call to the sanitarium. The nurse that answered the phone spoke with him briefly letting him know that today was one of his mother's good days. Then after their brief conversation the lady went to get his mother. Reid paced his apartment as he spoke with her for approximately five minutes.
It wasn't until he hung up that he began to question where his escort was and why he only received one when everyone else received two. As he thought, paranoia began to make the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
Whipping out the gun that Alecta had given him in his little vampire hunting kit, he swung around coming face to face with one of his worst nightmares. In his path was a not so living, breathing example that sometime, science fails. What science could explain the demon standing in front of him?
Reid merely opened the front of his shirt, showing that he had Henna applied in various forms of religious idolatry covering the front of his torso; that was accompanied by a silver cross, an eye of Horus, the Star of David….all of these hung on a chain around his neck.
"I have been kidnapped, tortured, shot at….I have learned my lessons well. Please, try me. I have deadly accuracy."
As the creature advanced on him, he took quick aim and squeezed the trigger. And just like Reid predicted, the bullet found its mark; a small silver bullet right into the heart. But as the creature fell and hit the ground Reid put another bullet in the heart; double tap is never a bad idea.
Reid quickly packed a bag, scrambling to get out of his apartment quickly. Upon finishing the job he grabbed his suitcase and his messenger bag, a light jacket, his cell phone…dialing a number.
"Dave, I need you to pick me up on your way out to the airport. I'll be at the bus stop up the road. I'm tossing my cell so don't expect another call from this number." After hearing Dave's affirmative, Reid turned the phone off, taking out the SIM card, and tossing it in the trash as he passed by.
Spencer only had to wait about 10 minutes for Rossi to pull up with Mrs. King and their escort in the car, but it was the longest 10 minutes of his life. He kept looking around expecting someone to jump out of the wood work at him. When Rossi pulled up Reid popped the tailgate of the SUV and tossed his suitcase in, shutting the lid, and then jumped in the back seat quietly.
"So do you want to tell me what has you on edge Reid?"
"Not yet. Just drive Dave."
Right on time, everyone started gathering at the airstrip.
Simon spoke first, 'We will not be taking your usual company jet. They may be on the look-out for that."
"A military jet though?" Morgan questioned.
"You can thank Immogene for that. That girl…..She's called in a favor to our friend in Brunei." Simon continued to make his way onto the plane.
"What friend is that?" Reid asked off hand.
Without missing a beat, without stopping his progress Simon replied, 'The Sultan. He owed us a favor."
Simon was finally on the plane and went to the cockpit to give instructions to the pilot. Yet again, an old friend…..he was the one that flew Alecta around the world in the first place. The pilot was none other than Radar.
"Get us into Istanbul one more time; the safest way possible."
"Yes sir."
Radar came to the cabin of the plane and helped to shut the door. Within a matter of minutes he was back in the cockpit, getting that plane off of the ground.
"For a military plane this thing's awfully comfortable." Morgan pointed out.
Simon smiled. "Yes my friend, on the outside it looks like a military plane, but on the inside it is fit for a king. The Sultan has many friends; but he has just as many enemies. He doesn't want the world to know which plane is his personal transport. Which, in case you were wondering, this is it. You're welcome to anything you see, all that the Sultan asks is that you leave the jet in the same shape you found it in. You are in his care now. Please enjoy yourself on the flight, he gives us is blessings."
Simon sat back down, fastening his seatbelt, and taking out some old yellowed pages that he was intent on reading.
"Excuse me,' Prentiss interrupted.
"Yes, Agent Prentiss?"
"What sort of favor does a man like the Sultan of Brunei owe you that he would lend you his own private jet?"
"It seems the Crown Prince was in a bit of trouble a few years ago. He was being accused of a crime he did not commit. Alecta's friends proved his innocence. That is all."
"Alright." Prentiss leaned back in her own seat and was watching Reid. He'd been awfully quiet since arriving.
Getting back up, she walked over to where Hotch was sitting, and fastened a seat belt.
"What do you think is wrong with Reid?" She leaned in whispering to Hotch.
"I haven't got a clue; he has been acting strangely though. Once we're safely in the air I will try to have a word with him."
Emily finally dropped it. The flight was going to take nearly 13 hours, she decided to get comfortable. With this plane being fit for a king, the seats were larger and plusher, they reclined fully. They were nearly the size of a twin bed. Prentiss decided to just kick back and catch a few winks; God only knows what they would wind up having to face later.
Simon looked up from his paperwork about 30 minutes later to realize that they all were sleeping. He stood up and made his way to the cockpit and sat down.
"So, come to help me out old man?" Radar quirked an eyebrow at him quickly.
"I'm no older than you. I just came to see if there had been any disturbances so far."
"No, not so far. But we do have nearly 12 hours left, so get comfortable. I will get us there faster if possible. Hey, I was wondering…..The skinny kid…"
"Yes, what about him?"
"Does he have a clue?"
"That he's one of her own? No, not at this time. He knows more than the rest, but still very little."
"I just thought I'd ask. He ganked that creeper like a pro, did he not? Just for a second it reminded me of the good old days."
"Yes, he's quite good. And what good old days are you remembering? The different religions were fighting to survive. You had the new Christian faith trying to over-take some of the former pagan religions….the Druids, the Canaanite beliefs, the Akkadians and Sumerians…the old religions were fighting to hold on and the new one was fighting for its place in the world. Everyone hated each other, everyone was right, everyone was wrong.
And then, did you forget the last battle of Armageddon? You remember how that went? The only thing that stood between mankind and utter annihilation was the massacre of the Nephilim. And her kind was just barely able to accomplish that. It was just dumb luck that one of her attributes was as a war goddess in the old religions. If it wasn't for that the others would have stood practically no chance at all."
"Not to worry you or anything…But I had heard that some of those buggers still roam, the Nephilim I mean."
"It wouldn't surprise me in the least. They were rather like cockroaches. They were a plague on the earth. They would have seen mankind and 'our' kind all enslaved doing their bidding, or they would have exterminated us all."
"There were a few that were actually quite good. Some fought on our side."
"Yes, but, there had been precious few of them compared to the others. Now, I'm going back to the cabin. Let me know if something seems amiss."
"You got it."
Simon got up and made his way back into the cabin of the plane and retained his former seat, again pouring over his paperwork. A lot of what he was reading was really all the same sort of thing. It was all about how to kill someone like….Simon looked up from his reading scanning the cabin…..someone like the foreign diplomat. Centuries ago they thought they had done the job. One of their best was sent to do the job. She took his head clean off as was her skill. She single handedly saved the life of the Sultan, and as a consequence saved the Ottoman Empire. She never even broke a nail. Things were quiet for such a long time. There were only a few minor mentions of vampirism anywhere in the world….not like ancient times….it bordered on rampant back then. Or it could have just been the superstitious nature of the various cultures that seemed to make it more pronounced. But it seemed that the closer one got to the modern era, modern being a relative term, that the tales lessened. Perhaps that was symptom of education. More people began receiving better education; they didn't have to rely on myths and such things to explain the world around them. They now had science, logic, and reason. But…..but when those things failed them….when they came face to face with the myths and legends of the old days, where was all that logic and science at. Those friends scattered to the four winds and left you to defend yourself. At that time you had to fall back on something.
The papers that Simon read, although they were basically about the same subject they were in various languages…..some of them were considered 'dead' languages, being spoken by only a few thousand people in the entire world anymore….if that many.
He was looking for a sure fire way to get rid of this pestilence once and for all. He didn't want to think of this thing coming back in 600 more years. God knows where he'd be; and more to the point, where would she be? What if she traded it all in for good and settled down with this man? She would live the mortal life, dying like they all do. And, then who would fight the evil?
Simon couldn't shake the feeling that something was…..off. He couldn't put his finger on it at all. He put his papers away and tried to focus on each member of the team and Alecta's mother as only he can.
He didn't bother with Reid. Simon knew about Reid. Everybody knew about Reid. The boy didn't have a wicked bone in his body.
Simon started with JJ and worked his way on down. By the time that he was done he had come to realize that any member of the group would jump in front of a bullet for the next member. That was good to know; it may not come down to it, but it was good to know all the same. He knew that Derek would die to protect any one of his team members, as would Hotch. Rossi was deep in thought about Alecta.
'He really does love her like she was his own daughter.' Simon thought to himself. And he knew that Hotch was….to say Hotch was in love with Alecta would be the master piece of understatements; sort of like saying that grass is green or that Earth is round, although, Simon had a little trouble digesting that bit of information when he first heard it.
He read Mrs. King and realized that she was a perfect fit as Alecta's mother. She loved Alecta as only a mother could, and she had that quality in her that Alecta had that would allow her to fight to the death if all else failed.
Emily was harder to read, but that was only because she was suspicious of everyone by nature. She was no more evil in spirit than the rest of them. And Penelope was about as innocent as Reid was, with a few minor acceptions…..naughty pictures of Morgan hidden on her computer? Simon would let that one go. For one thing the naughty pictures were from a time before they started dating and they were mostly photo shopped….Morgan in chaps actually featured prominently in there. Simon could only chuckle quietly and shake his head a bit. It's not like anyone could blame the woman.
That boy Jack….it was no secret why Alecta loved him dearly. He reminded her of the 'lost boy', as they all referred to the baby that died. Both boys would be similar ages and quite similar in personality. And there were closer ties between Jack and Alecta than that; although those ties were separated by quite a few centuries. Of course the same could really be said for Dr. Reid. And Henry was just the cutest little toe-headed boy that ever did live. Alecta loved him, too.
Alecta might be the only one that would cause problems. She got attached to her mortals far too often. She became so…..the earliest known case of her attachment came in the old days. She helped a woman deliver a baby in a barn. She helped the young husband build a fire to keep the family warm. She guarded the small family. When the time came she got the family out of Bethlehem to safety. Periodically she kept a check on the boy and his progress; and then the day came that he was crucified. That was the day that Alecta became completely unmanageable. She went off the rails and nobody could stop her…if they had shot her with a cannon they could not have stopped her. Everyone involved had to pay for the pain she was going through. She hunted down the Romans, Judas, and Pontius Pilate. They were all tortured before they begged for death. The only people to escape that particular treatment were the holy men that had basically given the boy up. She couldn't physically hurt them; she would never ever hurt a man of God, even if she felt that it was deserved. That was not her place. But she could drive them completely insane. And at least that made her feel better for a moment.
She didn't form attachments that strong very often, but when she did she became extremely unpredictable, and when the ones that she loved were in danger, her temper had a tendency to remind you of C-4. The others would be fairly simple to control. But Alecta….she had nearly 8,000 years of being a loose cannon behind her. She knew all the tricks.
After reading the team and deciding that they were all above reproach, Simon was finally tired and closed his eyes for a moment or two. When he opened them again it was to see Radar's goofy grin looming over him.
"Come on grandpa, we're in Istanbul."
"Smart ass."
Simon got himself up and grabbed his carry-on bag.
"You don't have to be so touchy. But I understand, old people need their rest or they get grouchy."
"You might remember that I was robbed of my rest then, and stay at least four feet away from me since you seem hell bent on rubbing it in."
"Nah, old man. I intend to escort you to your destination. I know how the elderly are forgetful."
"So help me boy! You…"
"I'm going, I'm going."
Radar chuckled to himself as he walked ahead of Simon, carrying one of Simon's suitcases. Simon meanwhile had begun walking and was looking around, he was suspicious of their surroundings, it was too quiet; he didn't like it.
Radar noticed this, 'What's going on old man?"
Glaring at Radar, 'What do you hear?"
"Nothing, just a few planes coming in, commerce as usual. That's about it."
"Do you hear any birds or anything of that sort?"
Radar listened more closely, 'Now that you mention it, no, not a sound."
"Stay with the others; I've got the boy."
They jogged to catch up with the others. Simon moved to keep Jack next to him. Radar was walking beside the group, scanning the rooftops and other surroundings; Simon too was looking around to see if he could find anything.
"Uh, Radar, what seems to be the problem?"
"It's nothing Agent Morgan, just some precautionary measures. That's all."
Rossi glanced over, 'You're sure about that?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact. Why do you ask?"
"That person up ahead that is standing there staring at us might have something to say about it."
"Simon! You got the kid right?"
Simon whirled around, looking, 'Yeah."
"Get him out of here. Dr. Reid, come here please."
Without another word, Simon grabbed Jack and vanished.
"Jack!"
"Agent Hotchner, please trust me when I say that he is in safe hands. Simon will let no harm come to the boy."
"But, where did they go?"
"Agent Hotchner, everything will be revealed, all in due time. Now, would you please get down?"
"What are you…?"
"Duck!' Radar yelled. Hotch hit the ground and Radar fired in his general direction only a few mere feet into the air. The shot would have likely struck Aaron in the head had he been standing. As it was, the shot struck the creature in the vicinity of its heart, causing it to drop to the ground before turning to dust.
Reid had spun around, nearly forgetting about the one that had been ahead of them in their path, leading into the airport….an airport that was mysteriously enough deserted at this time.
"I don't see the other one."
"Don't look for it, feel it. What is it that you feel?"
Reid shut his eyes and took a deep breath, turning to his left before opening his eyes coming face to face with it. Reid grinned at the creature, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes, placing the gun barrel against the chest of the creature and pulled the trigger. The creature stumbled back and fell, turning to dust as well.
"Radar that was a neat trick…."
"Yeah, yeah, there's tons more. We have to go now."
JJ and Will had grabbed Henry and hit the deck when Radar had yelled for everybody to duck, covering his eyes and ears. Once it was safe, they both stood up, helping Henry up and dusted each other off.
"Is everybody alright?"
Rossi looked around, seeing that the rest of the small group was all ok, 'Yeah, we're all here."
"Then come on. We shouldn't linger. The thing with these devils is that you never know when they will make another attempt. We have to move while we can."
Radar continued to lead them through to the airport.
"We will have to be careful from here on out, at least until we make it to the fortress. Few out here, in the world, can be trusted. Once we get to the fortress there will be damned near nothing that can touch us."
Once they entered the airport they realized that there were now people wandering around like you expect to have at an airport. These people hadn't been there before; at least it seemed that way, like time stood still or something crazy like that. Prentiss was left sort of shaking her head as if trying to shake loose the cobwebs.
Once they made their way through the small crowded airport they stood there on the curb; Radar was looking around trying to pin point what he would use for transportation.
"Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. We have a winner." Radar began running over to another one of those courier vans. 'I know this isn't ideal, maybe even a tad unsafe considering the little one…."
"Radar, after what we just saw, this is a walk in the park." Will drawled thickly.
"Well then get in my good man, and hold on to that child of yours." There were no actual seats in the van; there was only the cavernous space that was used to store boxes for transport. Speaking of which….
When Will first climbed into the back of the van he started tossing boxes out. Hotch jumped in and started helping him. Radar went up front to try to hotwire the thing. Rossi called shotgun claiming he was too damned old to be sitting curled up on the floor of the van that way. Radar allowed Mrs. King to sit up front with him and Rossi; the front seat was a bench style seat, and besides it would have been bad form to let the lady sit on the floor….she was Alecta's mom. JJ and Will had to sit in the back to keep an eye on their son. Hotch and Reid were actually safer in the back. The rear portion of the van was completely hidden, there were no windows except for the ones on the back doors.
Hotch, Reid, and Morgan sat on one side; Garcia sat on the other side with JJ, Will, and Henry. They made themselves as comfortable as possible.
"The ride to the fortress usually only takes about 30 minutes….if Istanbul traffic cooperates. I will try to make it faster than that. But make sure you hold on to the kid. And you two,' Radar pointed to Reid and Hotch,'be careful. I have my issues letting you sit up front,' he said looking at Rossi.
"Why? What did I do?"
"You did nothing wrong. It's just…..You are dear to her, as Agent Hotchner and the good Doctor. You sitting up front is just not safe. Keep your eyes open. Are you any good with one of these?" Radar handed him a sawed off shotgun.
"Young man, do you know anything about me?"
Radar grinned, 'Well, then old man it's time to earn your keep. I will need to focus on this bloody traffic. If anything comes near us that isn't a dog, bird, or homeless child trying to clean the windshield take it out. Although, if it is one of those kids, keep your eyes peeled. If they seem the least bit…."
"Rabid?"
"Sure, we'll say rabid…..double tap. This thing is loaded with silver ammo. And just in case,' Radar presented a small rectangular shaped box, 'a few extra rounds for good measure."
As it turned out they were able to make it the rest of the way to the fortress without any major incidents; although they weren't sure there for a few minutes. Once in a while Rossi or Radar would swear they could catch a glimpse of someone on the rooftop of a building when they were stalled in traffic. The first time that Rossi saw something like that and pointed it out to Radar, Radar told him that at that distance they were alright, but that if they came any closer to the vehicle to not hesitate to blast it.
They were driving along the river, coming up the long drive to the fortress. Mrs. King was seeing this all for the first time.
"I can see now why Alecta loves it here so much, it's beautiful."
"M'lady, there is a lot you are going to learn about Alecta in the coming days. Some of it will sound strange and may be difficult to comprehend….."
"Mr. Radar…."
"M'lady, you can call me Christopher, that's my real name."
"Christopher, I love my baby. For all intents and purposes, I came back from the dead for her…"
"You and a few others it seems." Radar interjected quickly.
"And there is nothing that can make me feel differently about my child."
As they pulled into the courtyard of the fortress, Radar had called ahead to have someone close the gate.
"Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Rumelihisari Castle. You may call it Rumeli for short if it's easier. Our lovely home was built between 1451 and 1452 by His Gloriousness, Sultan Mehmed II. His majesty extends every welcome to you all. You are free to do as you wish within the safety of the fortress. You will be given a tour of the place a little later, after we get you all settled and have some breakfast."
They begin walking into the castle, carrying their luggage, looking around. The entry huge; the doors were so large that what would have passed for door knobs would have been over your head. Everything about the place so far made you think of those enormous castles that you dream of as a child. As they entered that first room there was a large fire place, every team member plus a few could have stood inside the archway of that thing. The mantel piece was, like most everything else, carved from the local stone; the carving was quite artistically done and was lovely. Above that was hanging an old portrait of the Sultan.
"You see, he greets you even now. Alecta found this painting once….I forget now when, but it was always one of her favorites."
"Where is she, by the way?" Hotch asked the question that had been on his mind for hours.
"Hmmm, it's very nearly sunrise. She can be found on the battlements. She always did love to watch the sun rise over the Bosphorus. Although I must say, since they built that bloody bridge it has substantially marred the view. Everyone thinks it's such a wonder. If they remembered the way things used to be, they would hate that infernal thing as much as we do. And, also, she loves to watch as the Muezzin enters the Minaret to issue his Azan, or the morning call to prayer for the Muslims. While she stays in Istanbul, she never misses a morning."
"Where is the closest Minaret?" Reid questioned.
"A few hundred yards away. She can take in the sunrise and see her Muezzin all at the same time….they are old friends, she and her Muezzin. Although she herself is not of the Muslim faith, she does love to hear him perform the Azan. Most of them now use microphones and speakers to help it reach more people. But our friend still does it the old way. And after each of the callings, they turn to each other in the distance and acknowledge one another with a slight bow. It makes her day.
You will learn that, for all that she might be strong and difficult…."
Rossi cut in, 'Please, she idles at difficult….."
"That much is true, but she is still a sentimental soul. She misses some of the old ways very much. And seeing him there reminds her that some things never change. Now, everyone, come with me, I will show you at least to your quarters for now. You will be able to get cleaned up for some breakfast and then get some rest. The grand tour will come later."
The team was shown to their rooms each had a wonderful view; some had views of the Bosphorus, and some had views of parts of Istanbul itself. Everybody got showers and changed their clothes, then they all slept for about two hours while breakfast was fixed.
Hotch had lain across his bed, with the intention of resting. But he couldn't make his mind shut off. For one thing, Alecta was within his grasp again. He entertained thoughts of handcuffing her to himself so she could never run from him like that again. And then his second thought, which made him feel like a horrible father for a second….Where was Jack?
Jumping up, suddenly filled with anticipation, Hotch made his way back down the steps of the tower that they were being housed in. He wound up in the large room they had first been shown, looking up at the painting of the Sultan. His nose was on the long side, a little narrow, and yet his eyes were somewhat wide set. This gave his face an open appearance. His eyes themselves appeared quite intelligent; this was a man that knew a great many secrets and was quite cunning in his own right. Hotch stared at it for just a moment, thinking about how much Alecta thought of the great Sultan, and even relied on him.
"You better not fail her." Hotch said to the painting as he walked away looking for Jack. He never noticed the mysterious man that stepped from the shadows of an alcove that was hidden behind the fire place a bit. There were alcoves on either side of the fire place; the alcoves were doorways to another area of the fortress. There were heavy drapes that usually were closed across the alcoves to hide the existence of the entrances. Today they were pulled slightly off to the side, allowing for freedom to move about the fortress. Radar was correct when he said the Sultan offered them every welcome.
The man that stepped forward out of the shadows had a long narrow nose, with slightly wide-set eyes that gave the illusion that he held a great many secrets. He watched as Aaron Hotchner walked away looking for his son.
"I do not intend to young Master Hotchner." The man said ever so quietly as he retreated back into the shadows.
Post AN: So there's chapter 38. I finally found a decent cut off point. Yay me! I didn't think of any decent song lyrics that really suited me for this chapter, but I did find a couple nice quotes, one of which I have used before. Anyway lemme know what you think.