J.J dropped the cell phone as she jumped in fright at the sight of Angie's terrible grin beaming at her from across the room. Her auburn hair was a wild nest and her makeup was melting off her face. The agent had looked into the eyes of many unsubs in her career, but she had yet to see one so tragically beautiful. Where there could be kindness and laughter, there was a black hole in her soul. She almost looked like one of the zombies she'd seen Henry try to watch on T.V before she shooed him off to bed. She didn't look human.

"Well look what we have here…" Angie cooed, wielding a machete in her hand. "You've been a bad little agent, haven't you?"

J.J backed away, trying to put as much space as possible between her and the deranged girl in front of her. She looked around as inconspicuously as possible, hoping to see Luke lurking and ready to pounce it her defense. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be found.

Think…, she thought to herself, searching her mind for some way to get out of the impending confrontation.

She's crazy, she's homicidal… but, she still loves her family.

"Angie, listen to me…" J.J started, not completely sure where her words would take her. "My friends at the FBI, they're coming here now."

"Well if they're as intimidating as Dr. Reid, I must mind my manners," she cackled.

"My point is… it's over Angie. If you surrender now they'll go easier on you. That's how these things work," J.J said, trying to feed the stupid girl some angle that might push her toward logic.

"That's what you all say," she spat, holding up the machete menacingly. "I watch enough SVU to know that."

"And if it's between defending my family or handing myself over to you assholes for a lifetime of orange jumpsuits," she continued, stepping closer and closer to J.J. "I'll take the first one."

And then she swung.

Blessed with good reflexes, J.J dodged Angie's blow and streamlined toward the exit.

"Luke!" she screamed in desperation. "Luke! Where are you?"

The front of the store was dark, but a glimpse of moonlight filtered through the door crack leading her to the street.

The town, which had been evidently barren before, had reached a new level of desolate as she staggered into the street eying some form of human life besides the murderous girl on her trail.

"Run run run as fast as you can!" Angie sing-songed behind her, making her presence known further by scratching the machete across the restaurant's store-front window.

Although she had once been a speedy soccer forward, no one would be able to tell from her crippled pace. Breathing heavily, she leaned against the stoop of an empty florist four doors down from the restaurant. There was still not a soul to be found.

Peeking out from her hiding place, she realized she had lost sight on Angie.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Before she could make her next move Angie was on her. Spinning out into the street, the tip of the machete pricked J.J's forearm.

She automatically grabbed her arm in pain, the flesh stinging and wet with blood beneath her pale hand.

This was it. This was how she was going to die.

Until it wasn't.

Luke, eyes wide as saucers, descended on his sister. Weighing in over 100 pounds more than the petite red head, he nearly crushed her, wrestling the long blade out of her hand.

Angie let out mangled screams J.J could only compare to a cat in heat. She was not giving up easily; not even after her right arm snapped under his grip.

"Angie, no," Luke grunted, seemingly trying to talk sense into her.

Finally she went limp, but J.J. didn't trust it. Luke did, however, and turned toward J.J. His mouth went to form words of consolation, but they never left his lips. Angie had already darted for her weapon, which soon found itself plunged into her brother's back.

J.J screamed, a guttural scream that wrecked her already raw throat. Tears ran down her face as she watched her savior falter for a moment before turning around and throttling his sister by the neck until there was no life left in her eyes. And then he fell too.

J.J mustered the last bit of energy and limped over to where Luke had fallen. He was shivering. A drizzle of red slipped out the corner of his mouth, which was fixed with a grimace of quickly diminishing strength.

She grabbed his hand, clammy and limp in her own.

"Luke… I'm so sorry," she rasped.

He struggled with a few shakes of his head, obviously disagreeing.

"I p-promised him," he stumbled. "I saved you, J.J."

"You did," she smiled as tears streamed down, grabbing his hand tighter. "You really did, Luke."

"You're my hero."

At that, the young man's eyes lit up. It was the first sign of joy J.J had seen since they had landed in Montana all those days ago.

"Hero…" he muttered, still holding onto his grin.

It took eight minutes for him to fade. When he did, she could not find the strength to let go. Instead, she lay beside him… unfazed by whatever else was out in the darkness waiting.

Author's Note:

Excuses suck so I'll keep this brief: It's been a crazy year. I worked as a professional writer, I left that job, I almost lost my sanity. But as I said before, I'm going to finish this and thank you to those who've stuck around. This is for you guys. More to come in the next few weeks.