Chapter 3

Laying on her side with her sleeping wife spooned against her back, Jennifer tried to think of a way out of her current predicament with Assistant Director Linda Barnes.

"You could kill her," she thought to herself. Unbeknownst to all but a few people with the correct security clearance, her time with the Pentagon had been a backstop. She had spent her entire two years as a member of a secret unit formed to chase high-value intelligence targets to help with the fight against global terrorism. Her unique abilities had brought her to the attention of this group, knowing her talents could be utilised for their objectives.

Hidden beneath her gentle exterior was a fierce tigress who protected those she loved and cared about. She had quickly proven herself to her team in Afghanistan. Her ability to make plans promptly got them into this difficulty. The disappearance of Yasmin torpedoed Barnes's plans when the drug lord executed the girl's father; Barnes had lost her local contact, having to return to the States with her tail between her legs and admitting her utter failure to her superiors.

Troubling her was how Barnes had managed to get the information about Spencer's drug addiction after his captivity at the hands of Tobias Hankel. The information Barnes had could have only come from a team member. She had accidentally discovered her marriage to Erin while simultaneously in Cancun with them. Knowing their relationship, she had the top Trump, knowing Jennifer would do anything to protect Erin's reputation.

"I can hear you thinking from back here, Jenny," Erin told her.

Turning to face her wife, JJ smiled and kissed her. "Good morning, Sweetheart; sorry, just thinking about who told Barnes about the team. It has to be a team member, but I trust them all," smiled JJ

Figuring out her wife had something she wanted to tell her but wasn't sure if she should. "Just tell me, Rin, I know you want to," JJ told her wife; she started playing with Erin's nipple between her fingers, gently squeezing it just like she loved it.

"Oh, Jenny, you're a little minx," purred Erin.

JJ smiled, knowing how to handle her wife, wishing she could get away with doing this at work. She fantasised about taking her wife to her office desk dressed in only her FBI jacket.

"Oh, no, you don't, Rin, not before telling me," JJ told her wife as she grabbed her hand before pleasuring herself.

"I hate you, Jennifer Strauss-Jareau; fine, I called Liz last night. She is coming over for breakfast during your meeting with Barnes. I will ask her to arrange a meeting with Emily so I can tell her everything. You need her to help with things, sweetheart, don't hate me. You need your best friend on your side. Just there, Jenny, don't you dare stop," Erin replied,

"Thank you, Rin; you know me so well I'm not mad at you. Jennifer loved how well Erin knew her. It would be best if you told Emily she needs to stay mad at me until we discover the mole on the team. Barnes knows too much about occurrences she shouldn't. Please tell her I am sorry for not telling her about Yasmin and us. Now get your naked butt into that shower. I need something to keep me going why Barnes makes my life a living hell," smiled JJ as she dropped her sleep shorts to the floor and slapped her ass. "Come and get it," smiled the cheeky blonde.

Smiling at her playful wife, she got out of bed and followed her into the bathroom.

EJ

"Aunty Lizzie," smiled Yasmin as she greeted Elizabeth Prentiss.

"How's my special Persian Princess?" asked the senator

"Well, thank you, Aunty Lizzie. Are you here to help Mom make Mama smile again? She was crying last night," Yasmin hugged her favourite aunty.

A confused Senator looked at Erin. " Have you fought with Jennifer?" asked a concerned friend.

Shaking her head in response to her best friend's question, " No, Linda Barnes," answered Erin, knowing Elizabeth knew about everything they had done to get Yasmin away from the woman.

Erin spent ten minutes telling her friend about her current predicament with Barnes. Elizabeth listened to her friend, "How can I help you both?" Elizabeth asked her friend as soon as she had finished telling her everything

"I need you to arrange for me to speak to Emily alone away from the Bureau. Jennifer needs her best friend to help her with Barnes. I am going to tell her everything about Jennifer and Yasmin. Jenny won't admit it to me, but Emily hating her is destroying her. I think it's about time we tell her everything. I need your help, Lizzie," asked her friend.

Elizabeth pulled her old friend into her arms and hugged her gently, rubbing her back. "I will ask Emily to my office on the hill this afternoon. Is that soon enough?" asked Elizabeth

"Mom?" questioned Yasmin timidly

Erin smiled at her daughter. "Yasmin, what's wrong, sweetheart?" asked a curious mother

"Can-can I come with you? I want to meet Emily; Mama has told me everything about her. I want to meet Mama's best friend. Can I please?" pleaded Yasmin, giving her mother her best wide-eyed puppy dog look she knew neither mother could say no to.

Elizabeth laughed at Yasmin's antics. "Erin, you and Jennifer are so in trouble with your Persian daughter; she has you wrapped around her little finger already," laughed the Senator

"We both fell in love with this little beauty when we first met her. There was no way we were going to let Barnes hurt her. Of course, you can come, sweetheart. I think your Mama would like that, too." Erin told her daughter as she pulled her into her arms and kissed her on her cheek, "I love you, Sweetheart,"

"Love you too, Mom, and I love you, Aunty Lizzie," smiled Yasmin

"Love you too, Yasmin," smiled Elizabeth

Elizabeth Prentiss adored Yasmin; she smiled at the pretty young lady as she pulled out her cell phone and called Emily.

EJ

Sitting behind her desk, JJ was furious. Barnes had cancelled her meeting with her three minutes before her 8:15 meeting, and she was reminding Jennifer, who was in charge. Her idea about killing the annoying woman looked good at this very moment. She typed a quick text.

'Rin, Bitch cancelled the meeting three minutes before it started. How did your chat with Lizzie go? She is enjoying this. Love you, Jen x.'

Remembering her shower sex this morning, JJ smiled, placing her cell phone on her desk. Sipping her coffee, she replayed her shower fun in her mind, and her phone interrupted her daydreaming with Erin's reply.

'So sorry, Jenny, meeting her this afternoon on the hill taking Yaz; she is eager to meet Emily. Chin up. Love you, Erin x;)'

Placing her cell phone down with a smile, she glanced at her watch. Her momentary joy disappeared when she realised it was time to face her team. She noticed Emily standing outside when she heard a knock on her door. JJ wanted to hug her best friend so much but knew that she would have to wait until Erin could tell her everything. Feeling horrible, she looked up and smiled. "Come in, Agent Prentiss,"

"Ma'am, My mother has asked me to meet her on the hill this afternoon. She said it was important but couldn't tell me on the phone, and I can tell her I'm too busy." Emily scowled at JJ as she talked

Not wanting to sound too accommodating to Emily's request, "As long as all your consults are up to date, Prentiss, that's fine. You can make up the time you miss before the weekend." responded the unit chief.

Emily glared at her unit chief, waiting to be dismissed. "Something that you want to say to me, Agent Prentiss?" Enquired JJ with a raised eyebrow; Emily's attitude was already beginning to annoy her. JJ didn't want to react to the apparent provocation, knowing that's what her team longed for. This was their way of overtly showing her their displeasure with her actions without breaking any rules.

"Dismissed Agent Prentiss," she told her friend, noticing the smirk on her brunette-haired friend's face.

EJ

Ashley received her twenty dollars from Morgan with a smirk. "Thank you, Derek; it an absolute pleasure to take your money," smiled the young profiler. Rossi begrudgingly handed the blonde profiler his two twenty-dollar bills. While the team discussed what to do about Strauss and JJ, a small bet had been put together that their new unit chief would be furious this morning after Garcia's electronic revenge against the pair, and Rossi had arranged with the other unit chiefs to visit her in her office to educate her on the error of her ways.

"I told you someone with the balls to do what our little blonde-haired treasonous liaison did to Hotch wouldn't flinch. You need a heart to care. Sitting up there on her throne, Freya is an ice queen with ice-cold blood. We need to up our game, gentlemen." Ashley told the group as they looked through her office window at Emily.

"How upset is Freya?" Enquired Garcia, hopefully looking dull in her dark blue pinstripe pants suit. The frames of her glasses matched her pinstripes. Penelope even looked shorter, wearing a pair of comfortable flats on her feet rather than her usual six-inch rainbow-coloured platforms.

"JJ looked happy sitting behind her desk when I arrived this morning. She was here earlier than she would generally come into the office, but I thought it might be because of her new job. There was no indication that she was upset. Her body language told me she was very content with no sign of anxiousness." Reid told everyone while he worked through his case file.

"Baby girl, did your friend deliver?" Morgan asked; a smirk appeared when he took in Garcia's pinstripes. "Damn, Baby girl, you rock the pinstripes. You look just like a federal employee should look," smirked Morgan,

"Don't you dare Derek Morgan? I can feel the lack of colour draining my life force already. It's not even lunchtime, and I need a colour-changing lamp in my office immediately. He confirmed he did his thing on the evil and ice queens. He has never let me down before." responded Garcia, glaring at him

Emily descended the stairs back into the bullpen, looking worried. She was concerned about her mother summoning her to the hill. Such summonses in the past had never been anything good for Emily, and they usually involved her being guilted into some political or social event. The ambassador loved waving the rainbow banner.

"What's up, Emily? You look worried. Did she say something to you?" Morgan asked his partner

"No, my mother wants to see me this afternoon. She won't tell me why on the phone. I was checking to see if I could go. I must make the time up before the end of the week." answered the concerned profiler. Everyone stopped what they were doing when JJ walked out of her office. The group watched as JJ walked up to the rail.

"Briefing room, it's time for a little chat," declared JJ, the blonde unit chief who observed her team from the catwalk as they silently turned and walked off.

EJ

Standing before her team, JJ smiled at Garcia; her friend looked like a dull federal employee dressed in her pantsuit. The technical analyst moved uneasily in her chair under her direct stare, just like she had something to hide. She switched her attention to David Rossi, and her smile broadened. The senior profiler returned the blonde's smile, still pleased with himself for arranging her special greetings from her fellow unit chiefs.

"Ms Garcia, Chief Strauss and my bank accounts, amongst other things, were systematically attacked last evening. It would seem we were both singled out by someone in Manchester, England. I don't suppose you know anything about that?" Asked JJ, glaring directly at her pinstriped analyst

"No, Ma'am," Penelope answered abruptly, disdain in her voice evident. JJ didn't need to be a profiler to know a show of bravado when she saw one.

"That's good to know, analyst Garcia. I would hate to see you implicated in the cyber-crime against two federal agents. Come in, Ma'am," JJ beckoned to the door.

Everyone turned to see their section chief walking into the conference room, a broad smile on her face, much to the team's annoyance. Stranger still was the stuffed red devil toy she had clutched under her arm.

"Good morning, Agent Jareau; it has all been signed off by the director," Strauss smiled as she handed the stuffed red devil to her new unit chief.

Noticing Garcia's interest in the stuffed devil, she held JJ and smiled. "His name is Fred the Red. Do you like him, Penelope?" smirked JJ as she noticed everyone's astonishment.

"Agent Reid, please tell everyone about Fred the red's relationship with Manchester United football club," asked JJ, not moving her eyes from Garcia. The analyst was becoming uncomfortable under her constant vigil.

Taking a moment to use his eidetic memory, he smiled when he found what he needed, "since the early 1990s, Fred the Red became the mascot of Manchester United Football Club. The club's nickname was the Red Devils, so Fred the Red was adopted as the team mascot, appearing before games to entertain the crowd. He wears the number 55 on his football shirt. " Announced Reid

"While I appreciate your different leadership style, Ma'am, what relevance does this have with the BAU?" Rossi challenged

Still smiling, the blonde waited for a second, her eyes fixed on her technical analyst. Pulling the attached memory stick from Fred the red, she slipped it into the laptop and accessed the files. Using the remote control, a picture appeared on the wall-mounted monitor.

"I would like you to meet Fred the Red, the hacker, not the mascot. He was responsible for hacking our bank accounts last evening. Eric Statham, age 39, is a known friend of the Black Queen. He was apprehended early this morning, UK time. He is currently relishing his new room in Strangeways prison. He freely admits to hacking Chief Strauss and myself. We believe we were targeted specifically, but he told detectives he had picked us both randomly. Unfortunately for our red devil fan, interpol wants to question him about a few malware issues he caused to blackmail companies." smirked JJ noticing how uncomfortable Garcia had become. JJ knew she had gotten her friend to hack her and Erin but couldn't prove it.

"Agent Rossi, we are streamlining our units to make them more cost-effective. The director has agreed to try my proposal to remove the media liaison from each team. As the Alpha team, we are losing the liaison. Each team member will take a turn to do the media duties. Before we start the case, I will nominate who is responsible for media responsibilities. Thank you for my welcome chat with the fellow unit chiefs you arranged for me yesterday afternoon. I have decided on your first up. As you are such a senior unit member, I have selected you for a refresher course this afternoon; you need to report to public relations at 13:00. Someone as old as you, Agent Rossi, should be able to teach them a thing or two," said JJ remembering her time with her fellow unit chiefs.

Smiling, Rossi looked unfazed. "When do you leave the unit, Ma'am? You are not a profiler," he smugly informed her.

"Supervisory Special Agent Jareau is not going anywhere, Agent Rossi. She is the new permanent unit chief of the alpha team. The idea is that the unit chief understands how profiling works. It's not a requirement for them to be trained as profilers sometimes; additional skill sets added to the team can strengthen them in ways they didn't know they needed to be. The director and I both agreed and approved Chief Jareau's idea." Strauss replied, knowing how to push his buttons. Jennifer didn't deserve Dave's wrath; she knew her wife felt horrible over what she had done to Hotch. Knowing whatever happened to her, she had ended his FBI career. Unfortunately, Yasmin would always be their priority.

"And what additional skill set does Chief Jareau bring to the team?" Asked Morgan

"What cases do you have open on your desks?" asked JJ, bringing the meeting back on course. Understanding the conversation was over, the team talked about their open cases for the next hour, professionally and with only an occasional barb aimed at JJ from the group. Finished, she dismissed everyone, placing a small box next to Penelope as she walked out.

Not wanting to touch the box, Garcia's curiosity gained victory as she opened the lid.

"That's so cute!" shrieked the excited analyst when she looked at her gift—a small rainbow-coloured unicorn lapel pin. Hesitantly, Garcia pinned her unicorn to her lapel, adding much-needed colour to her pinstripe ensemble. The need for colour squashed her guilt, accepting the olive branch offered by Freya.

Watching on her computer, JJ smiled as she watched Penelope pin her unicorn to her lapel. Her moment of joy was short-lived when she received a text from Barnes summoning her to her office.