A/N: Last one before the Epilogue. Please read and review! Thanks again rmpcmfan and thehecticglow for your kind words!

/

"I wish I could have learned." He threw a small twig into the rushing water below. His voice wasn't sad or disappointed. Just a little wistful if nothing else.

Molly found him sitting on top of a dam made of logs and mud. The materials of it suggested that it hadn't been made by beavers-they stuck to smaller branches and rocks-but it wasn't a product of the city either. It was more than likely constructed by some local kids who were bored one weekend.

She arched a brow when she stepped onto it. It was quite sturdy.

Flynn, still in his hat and heavy coat, swung himself around and dangled his feet over the tiny waterfall that trickled through the cracks of the wood. The sound was peaceful to both of them.

"It's not that great." Molly told him, moving carefully across until she was able to lower herself into the seated position. "Your hair gets all wet and your skin dries up." She opened and closed her fists as if to demonstrate. The dried blood on her palm cracked from the disturbance.

Her chest tightened when he stuck out his lower lip ever so slightly. "It just would have been fun I guess." He murmured running the back of his hand under his nose. "I mean, I love our house, but I've always wanted to swim."

Molly sighed and turned to stare at the river flowing beneath them. The dam was more of a decoration at this point. The powerful waters had long since forced their way through the base and rushed out over the rocks, continuing their journey south.

His words rang in her head. She had always longed to go swimming when she lived in Iceland. Of course she had learned how to do so when her father threw her into the icy lake behind their cabin. 'Survival Training' he had called it-she had to be prepared for every situation. After she left to go live with the Malloys, they were too far out into the country and had no access to pools or lakes.

Ironically, her chance came when she was taken in by Laramie. Of course the opportunity wasn't presented by the General himself, but by the Prentiss'. Their large heated indoor pool was essentially her home every Saturday from 2 to 5. She would only stop when Neil barged through the back door with a plate of shish kabobs or some other delicacy prepared on his fancy grill.

It was the only time she got to experience 'normal' in her childhood. And she hated herself for not giving Flynn that same chance.

"I'm sorry buddy." She whispered, picking at a group of dead leaves that had fallen from the tree tops onto the dam. They crinkled into dust between her fingertips.

"Can we go swimming now?" His eyebrows arched and he nodded towards the water below.

Her mouth opened to form an argument-absolutely not! It was far too dangerous and cold! But the look on his sweet face did something to her rational mind.

/

Emily saw the same boot prints as before. They were in the clearing about a mile into the woods. She knew who they belonged to and her stomach dropped.

She was being careless. She wasn't even trying to hide her tracks. Something was wrong.

Hotch and the rest of the group must have seen them too, because they were all gathered around now, staring at the ground. She heard Morgan speak-probably to JJ or Rossi-giving them their exact location.

"We're getting close." He was saying. "She's on foot."

Not looking back, Prentiss moved onwards, towards the trees. She was tempted to start yelling out, but resisted. There was still protocol to follow.

"Why did she come out here?" Elizabeth huffed grasping Spencer's arm as the went after her daughter. The stiletto heels of her boots were sinking into the damp earth with each step she took, so she was relying on a little extra support.

The young man who was kind enough to be her human walking-stick shrugged and made sure she saw the group of loose rocks they were approaching. "If I were to venture a guess, I'd say she was at her wit's end." He stated simply. "She's spent weeks avenging this group that has essentially ruined her adult life and she finished off by inflicting more torture onto the man who destroyed her early life. For someone like her, it should have been a nice release, but now she probably has time to reflect on her reason for doing all of this."

"Flynn?" The Ambassador's voice was distant. She was still adjusting to the loss of the boy she never got to meet.

Reid ducked his head and moved a low hanging branch out of her way as she stepped by. "Yeah." He sighed.

/

She had taken off her boots and jacket, they would have made it difficult to navigate the icy waters. "Keep your hat on." She instructed, pulling her hair out of the ponytail that had loosened during her trek in the woods. As she scooped her long locks back into a tight bun, she continued. "And hold on to by belt loop..."

Her words disappeared into the crashing waves when she turned to the spot where Flynn had just been removing his own tiny shoes. Again, he was nowhere to be seen.

She had lost him again.

/

"You here that?" Derek held up his arm to stop Prentiss from moving on. She paused, along with everyone else, and tilted her head.

"Is that water?" Reid asked from the back of the group. He was still holding his arm up for Ambassador Prentiss to lean on. His question was rhetorical, because the sound of rushing water was unmistakable.

Morgan turned to Hotch who gave him a nod, gesturing that he move onward. This could have been a dead end, but there was only one way to find out. Emily wasn't going to turn back until she did everything in her power to find Molly.

"Reid, take the Ambassador back to the clearing to wait for JJ and Dave." Hotch ordered. "Unless you hear otherwise, bring them this way as soon as they arrive."

Spencer nodded and gestured to Elizabeth who looked like she was ready to resist, but relented after a hard look from her daughter. There was nothing she could do at this point anyway. She let out a sigh and accepted the young agent's hand with a quiet, "thank you".

When it was just the three of them again, Aaron turned to his two head agents. "We need to keep a sharp eye out." He said needlessly. "Her tracks could disappear if she went through the water, so watch them for as long as possible to predict a possible direction she is headed in."

In reality, he was stalling.

Molly Prentiss was skilled, even at her most unstable. That was made more and more evident with every amputated victim she left in her wake. He wouldn't put it past her to walk along the riverbed to conceal her tracks.

And he wouldn't put it past Emily to go into the river to follow her.

/

"Mom! Mom?"

His voice came from behind her, below her, above her, and every other direction. It never sounded from the same spot twice. More than once, she would stumble towards the edge of the dam, hoping to catch sight of the bright red hat.

"F-Flynn?" She whispered, her eyes flickered down to stare at the foamy gray water crashing against the rocks below. Her hands had long since clenched into fists and were shaking at her sides.

Why did he keep running from her?

"Mommy!"

The terror in his voice had her moving to the rocky area to the right of the bed. She lurched forward, finding her right foot caught in between two of the jagged logs she had just been sitting on. "No...no..." She whimpered, yanking and pulling, trying desperately to dislodge herself.

"Help! Mommy!"

His tiny pale hand came from the water just ahead. It reached desperately for a jagged boulder, but slipped off of it immediately.

"FLYNN!" Her throat felt as though it ripped from the sheer force of the voice that broke through it. But she didn't pay it any mind. She twisted her body and pulled up her pants leg, to loosen the straps that attached the titanium prosthetic to her thigh. In the past, it had always taken her a good three or four minutes to remove the contraption, but this time she had it off in fifteen seconds flat.

If it had been another situation, Molly would have found her appearance humorous. She had always found her stub of a leg quite hilarious. When they were in love, she would club Nick with it in bed, just as he was dozing off. That was when she still had her wooden prosthesis, so she couldn't sleep with it. Her fiance was initially uncomfortable with the half-limb plowing into his gut night after night, but when he saw that she was amused by it, he took it in stride.

Now, she just prayed that her pathetic excuse for a leg could hold up in the treacherous waters below.

Her child needed her.

She wouldn't let him down this time.

"Molly!"

The voice stopped her just after she climbed up onto her left foot, balancing precariously on rickety dam.

Emily was standing by the tree line with her boss and Morgan. They were frozen in spot, staring at her as though she were a mirage. For a second, she saw Agent Hotchner's hand hover over his gun, probably out of habit, but he moved it away as soon as he realized what he'd done.

"Flynn!" She heard the tears in her voice, but she didn't care. She pointed shakily at the rocks her son had just been clamoring for.

Morgan looked to Hotch, his brows furrowed. "Did she just say Flynn?"

Prentiss knew what was happening though. She was having a mental break and she saw her son in the water. It wouldn't have been the first time that a grieving parent saw their deceased child reaching out to them. "Molly! We can help him, but you need to get over here!" She reasoned, stepping closer to the dam. They were still twenty yards away. She wouldn't be able to get over there in time to stop her. "He's closer to us. If you go from there, you'll only injure yourself."

Molly was ready to take her advice. She wouldn't be able to do anything if she cracked her head open. But immediately the decision was made for her.

"Mom! Please!" Flynn cried out. He was further away now. He was going to be lost again if she didn't hurry.

"Over there! Emmy! Meet me there!" She shouted, pointing to the foaming waters just past the agents. She jumped into the river without hesitation.

And immediately regretted her decision.

Holy hell! Holy hell! Holy hell! Her mind was screaming as she hit the rocks that sat less than five feet beneath the surface of the water. Her leg, the left one obviously, slammed into something hard and sharp and the shoulder that was still riddled with shrapnel holes jerked back at an odd angle when it connected with the water.

When she pulled herself above the surface, she strained her neck to peer over the cresting waves. But every time she was able to maneuver herself forward an inch or two, she was shoved back under.

Aaron grabbed onto Emily the second Molly jumped. They were obviously going to save her, but he couldn't allow her to dive in while blinded with panic.

"Oh god!" Elizabeth's voice came from behind them and he knew that the rest of his team had arrived. "Agent Hotchner! We have to get her!"

"I know that ma'am, but..." He was just turning to give her a quick rundown of their typical rescue protocol, but the arm he'd been holding onto wrenched itself free of his grasp as soon as he was distracted. "Emily!"

His voice was echoed by both Elizabeth's and JJ's as they watched Prentiss charge into the water.

She was immediately pushed back by the strong current, but she dug the heels of her boots into mud and rocks as she trudged onward. Molly was pushed under three or four times before she disappeared completely.

Hotchner and Rossi ran over to the dam and made their way across it to the opposite shore. It was closer to where Molly had landed, so they wanted to be nearby when she was pulled out. Morgan hopped along the rocks a few yards downstream, in case Emily lost her footing and was taken by the river. Reid and JJ held onto Elizabeth, as she had been the one to run for the river when she saw her daughter go in.

They couldn't have anyone else in there.

Prentiss shuddered when her arm came out of the water and met the icy air. The initial shock of jumping into a Colorado River in the winter time had worn off and now she was frozen to the bone. But she ignored the feeling, pushing it away into one of her many boxes, and shoved her hands back under the swirling grays and whites.

She was close to where she had last seen Molly's red hair. The desperate mother had pushed herself at least fifty feet away from the dam, using every ounce of strength left in her to save the ghost of her son.

Emily let out a cry of frustration when she was knocked back by another wall of frigid water. Hotch yelled something, probably begging her to switch off with Morgan, but she blocked him out. He knew as well as she did that there was no time for that. It had been nearly two minutes since Molly had gone under.

Pushing herself away from the large rock she'd slammed into, Prentiss bit back another groan and used a low hanging branch to pull her tired body back towards the area she needed to be in.

But when she made it that five feet, she felt nothing. No Molly, lodged in between stones on the riverbed. Emily had turned to Morgan, who was still keeping a vigilant watch on the water rushing towards him.

She hadn't drifted off. She wasn't where she had gone under. Where the hell...?

"Emily!" Her mother's choked voice broke through her addled mind.

Using a rock for leverage, Prentiss glanced over her shoulder to see Elizabeth practically yanking Reid and JJ into the water as she pointed to a spot on the other side.

Hotch and Dave saw the object that caught her attention first, but Emily was closer. And since she was heading downriver now, she let the water half-carry her to the thicket of vines and rock formations just off of the shore.

Molly was lying face down, her navy coat tangled in the stones, keeping her in place.

"Hey...hey." Emily winced when she collided with a boulder to make herself stop, and crawled up next to the prone form of her sister-in-law. Her hands slid against the ice and mud, but she was able to right herself enough to pull Molly up and out of the water.

By then, Rossi and Aaron were there to help her as she rolled over the weighed down body. "She's not breathing." Prentiss noted, sniffling, and half-heartedly shoving Hotch when he pulled her completely onto the shore. "I have to...I have to help her! She's not breathing!"

Aaron nodded and pushed her to sit on a fallen log a few feet away. "Let us take care of it." He ordered, keeping his voice as firm as his gaze. He never liked taking that tone with her, but she had just jumped into a river against his command. He couldn't let her waste her currently limited breath resuscitating the unconscious woman.

Morgan had made his way to their side and was edging along the thin strip of land between the water and the trees, while JJ and Reid were assisting Elizabeth across the dam. The stubborn Ambassador refused to stay away.

"I can't feel a pulse." Dave muttered, unzipping Molly's coat and yanking the three flannel and thermal shirts away from her pale abdomen. He looked to Aaron who had started to lower himself down beside the woman's head-one arm was still outstretched to keep Prentiss in place. "Aaron, you do the compressions?"

He said it as a question, but he wasn't giving him a choice in the matter. Rossi knew his arms weren't strong enough to exert enough pressure.

And as the group convened, the two men began to perform CPR on Molly.

Her eyes weren't opening, but she could see. She saw herself as Agents Hotchner and Rossi tried to revive her-Agent Jareau knelt down and held her head in place to make it easier for the latter to blow into her mouth. She saw Emily and Elizabeth watching from the log a few yards back. She saw awkward Dr. Reid standing over them with his hands shoved in his pockets and swaying from one foot to the other. Agent Morgan alternated between folding his hands behind his head and swinging them around to rub one across his mouth.

Molly felt a cold, hard pressure expand from her chest down to her fingers. It was as though she were stuck in a dream on time lapse, standing over people who couldn't even see her. The sight of her own body lying at her feet, was less daunting than it should have been.

"Mom, you okay?" Flynn was next to her now, watching the scene with a tilted head and wrinkled nose. "Why's that guy kissing you?"

She opened her mouth to respond, but found that her throat was blocked and her eyes burned. Before she could even raise her hands to her face, a bright light filled her vision. The sudden sensation of falling hit her, and she could no longer see the agents or her son.

That was when she finally felt pain.