#warofhearts

“Greetings, my fine British scone! I have dug into all blueprints for the home as you asked and at least officially, there is no basement, no extra building permits and no small spaces that you and Reid haven’t already searched.” She explained, attempting to use her bright attitude to soften the impact of the information and I sighed in disappointment.

“Are they getting anywhere with the interview?” I asked hopefully, beginning to pace in the garden of the property impatiently. We had little to work with at this point and I remained conscious of the clock for child abductions, which had been against us since we arrived.

“Nada, I’m afraid. It seems that this Bo Peep is keeping very secretive track of his sheep.” She answered and I cursed under my breath in annoyance. “This team knows what they’re doing, Ally. They’ll crack him, eventually.”

“Amanda doesn’t have time to wait for that.” I groaned, the helplessness of the situation already grating at me. “We must have missed something in this guy's history. Maybe there’s a link to the Sweeney Todd stuff that we haven’t noticed. Have you found any more files on Logan in the military system?”

“Honey, you would be shocked at how little the military has modernised. Not only am I having to battle against heavy encryption, but a whole bunch of information hasn’t been digitised yet. They’re still recording an awful lot of their logs with pen and paper.” She divulged with an obvious sense of disgust and I felt my interest peak.

“Do they keep the paper records on site? And if so, can you get me access to them?” I suggested, waiting with baited breath for her answer and Penelope simply chuckled confidently.

“Of course I can. I’ll get hold of the Colonel now. Head over to office 4A, that’s where they store it all. I’ll have one of those charming soldier boys bring your laptop and an access code for you.” She instructed proudly and I had to smile as I hung up the phone to search for Reid.

Once back inside the house, I found him staring intently at a picture on the wall in the master bedroom and seeming as if he was lost in thought. I cleared my throat as I approached to keep from startling him, but he didn’t move at all to acknowledge me.

“Penelope might have a lead for us. She’s arranging access to the paper files in 4A. I’m thinking some of the details about Logan’s past might be buried in there. Want to ride along?” I offered, causing him to finally turn to face me with interest and I couldn’t help noticing how handsome he looked when he was concentrating.

“That’s a good idea. Perhaps something was omitted from the original report when it was added to the system.” He agreed, causing me to smile at the support for my suggestion. I wasn’t used to having colleagues appreciate my input and it still gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling every time that this team trusted me. “I’m gonna stay here, if you’re okay going alone? I think I’m close to something.” He checked, examining my face closely for any signs of discomfort, until I nodded in confirmation.

“Sure. I can fly solo. I’ve got my phone on me, so just call if there’s anything I can do to help out.”

--⥈--

When Penelope described the base as behind the times, I hadn’t ever imagined a level of disorganisation this extreme to be possible amongst military personnel. I’d set up my laptop at the small desk in the room, before sitting cross legged on the floor amongst the stacks of boxes that almost reached the ceiling in places.

Even the soldier who had granted me access seemed too daunted by the task ahead of me to be able to cope with remaining in the cramped room and after many reassurances that I was quite capable of sitting here alone, he’d returned to his post. Time had already lost meaning and I was growing bleary eyed from the onslaught of information.

Fortunately, Penelope broke up the task by giving me regular updates on the team, who were still having little success in their interrogation of the suspect and were now highly relying on Reid and I to find something that they could use to pressure him.

There were countless reports of Logan’s antisocial behaviour amongst the boxes and it became clear that his friendship with Franklin as he rose to power allowed him far more leniency than any other member of staff would have received in similar circumstances. There was very little information on his wife Stacey, who seemed to have joined the military later in life and met her husband there. She was an otherwise painfully ordinary soldier, serving her time with little distinction and a simple life right up until her death.

I sighed as I got to my feet and stretched out my limbs, desperation creeping up on me. There was nothing here that bought us any closer to finding Amanda and at this point, I was losing faith that we would ever recover her alive. I pulled out my phone to contact Reid in the hope that he might have had some success, but realised that I had no service. With a dramatic groan, I navigated my way through the maze of paperwork that I’d created to reach the door, only to find that it wouldn’t open.

A cold chill ran down my spine, causing my stomach to flip and I couldn’t deny a feeling of severe dread pooling in my stomach. Instinctively, I pulled the handle a few more times, but after my earlier performance with a simple wooden door, I knew that I wasn’t getting out of this steel, electronic locked door without help. Holding my phone up in the air, I paced the room in an effort to catch a signal to little success, before I was interrupted by a loud sound in the distance that caused the ground to shake.

“Shit!” I hissed, grabbing a nearby shelf for balance and noticing that my heartbeat had already quickened in my chest. I hit my phone in a panic, desperate to get through to someone and just as I felt myself losing control, my gaze fell onto my laptop.

Dropping into the seat heavily, my fingers grazed over the keys with an urgent desire to seek help. I first confirmed that the base’s systems were all locked out, meaning that I couldn’t contact any of the team or any military support, but was blessed to discover that my connection to the FBI system was still live. Immediately, I utilised this to get in touch with Penelope and the moment that her face filled my screen, I sighed with relief.

“Oh, Alice! Thank god you’re okay!” She gasped before I could even get a word out and the flustered expression that she wore only intensified my fear. It was clear that whatever had happened was unexpected for her too and I knew that whatever piece of the puzzle that we were missing was likely about to complicate our situation.

“What the hell is going on?” I breathed, noticing that something was flashing in the background of her video and as I concentrated harder, I realised that I could hear alarms.

“There was an explosion in the main building. We think that it came from Colonel Franklin’s office, but I can’t tell. The security systems have kicked in. We’re trapped in this room.” She answered hurriedly, her eyes wide with panic and as I opened my mouth to ask if the Colonel had made it, he appeared behind her. “I think there’s been a couple of other targets too, as the base system has gone down. This is not the work of a hacker, or you and I would definitely have been targeted. Whoever it is likely blew up the actual server rooms themselves just to kick us out. I was terrified that there might have been one in your room too.” She admitted, seeming shaken by the idea and I quickly caught up to what she was implying.

“To get rid of the paper trail, too. Colonel, how many people know about this backlog of paperwork here?” I enquired nervously, attempting to quash the fear that I might meet a fiery death at any moment and he moved to take a seat beside Penelope.

“We had an administrator a while ago who was responsible for amalgamating all of the paperwork onto the system, but other than that it’s only top ranking staff.” He explained in confusion and I released a long breath in relief.

“Alright. So, other than the soldier that you just had in here, there’s hardly anyone on this base who knows that you are still holding paper documentation. We can assume that if I haven’t been blown up already, I’m probably safe. Unfortunately, I’m also locked in, so I have no choice but to test that theory.” I reported, causing Penelope to frown in terror and I fidgeted awkwardly in my seat at the thought. “What about the rest of the team? Are they okay?”

“I can’t get hold of them. It’s possible that the cell towers have also been blown out.” Penelope revealed, tears beginning to fill her eyes and I found myself holding my head in my hands as I considered our predicament. The faces of each of our team members flashed through my mind and I said a quick prayer in my mind for each of them to calm my anxiety.

“The lockdown protocol would only affect high priority areas. This room houses all of our main access to the base systems, the room that Hawthorne is in has our physical records and the cell block where your agents are interviewing closes to contain prisoners. The rest of the base will already be proceeding with evacuation.” The colonel explained, his demeanour significantly calmer than either of us and I strained to come up with a plan.

“If this evacuation procedure is known by the whole base, there’s a chance that a bomb could already be in place to inflict more casualties. They’d be sitting ducks.” I analysed, looking back up at the screen with severity as I realised that everyone but Reid was trapped behind locked doors somewhere. “We need to override the locks somehow. Where is your security system housed?”

“Right where you are, Agent. There should be a large metal container in the corner.”

Wasting no time, I jumped to my feet to rush to the cupboard and entered the code that the Colonel provided to open it. Behind the innocuous looking metal doors was a spaghetti junction display of wires to an ancient security system and I could hardly believe that anyone would still be using such antiquated technology.

“You have got to be kidding me!” I exclaimed as I marched over to grab my laptop and placed it on a box with a clear view of the cupboard’s contents. “I hope you’re up to date with your caveman technology, Nels. This is like Jurassic Park in here.” I announced, hearing a dissatisfied groan from her over the speakers.

“This is absolutely criminal. Fortunately, I toyed with robotics for a while before computer science, so I might be able to crack this.” She calculated as she began drawing out the pattern of the wiring on a piece of paper. “It looks like there’s a simple enough bypass here, but it’s going to take me a few minutes to figure it out.”

“Colonel, I’ve looked at everything that you have on Logan and nothing here is giving us the answers that we need to find your daughter. I can’t find a connection to Sweeney Todd at all. Sure, there’s a similar feeling that he could be inspired by, but plenty of stories could say the same. There has to be a reason why he chose that particular one. Did the Logan’s have a love of musicals as a couple?” I asked, deciding to utilise our waiting time to keep the focus on Amanda, instead of obsessing over the safety of our colleagues.

“Not that I remember. They were average soldiers, into sports and barbecues. They weren’t the type to read often, so I can’t understand why he would be this obsessed with some story?” The Colonel answered, his frustration evident as he struggled to comprehend the relevance of this conversation.

“What about Stacey? She joined service late. From the limited background information in her file, it doesn’t seem like she was military bred. Was there anything in particular that led her to enlist?” I probed, desperately trying to find the missing piece of the puzzle and he sighed deeply at me.

“I don’t know what it is that you’re trying to say about her, Agent Hawthorne, but she was a good soldier. Her unit was everything to her. She treated them like a family. Even gave them haircuts when they were on tour.” He growled, seeming thoroughly offended by my questions and I quirked a brow at him in interest. “She was a barber before she enlisted. It was her fathers trade and she followed in his footsteps. I can tell you that came in incredibly handy when you’re living in the middle of the desert.” He added defensively and I jumped to my feet to scatter around paperwork in search of something specific. A theory clicked in my mind at this revelation and I knew that it had to be the connection that we needed.

“Sir, we believe that your daughter is still on this base. We’ve been looking for places that relate to you, or your wife, but I suspect that it may have more relevance to Stacey. Is there anywhere on this base that she would offer haircuts? Or did you have a specific barber shop here at any point?” I pelted out the questions in quick succession as I laid the blueprint of the base out on the floor and busied myself with examining it again.

“I already told your agents that. The people here go to a family business in the next town. It’s owned by a grandparent of one of the troops. We support each other in the military.” He answered aggressively and I scanned the document before me with confusion. Something seemed out of place, a structure that I didn’t recognise and as I grabbed a current map to compare it, I noticed that it wasn’t marked.

“This building here is on the blueprint, but not the map. What is it?” I interrogated, holding up the document accusingly and he rolled his eyes at me.

“It’s marked for demolition, but the project has been put on hold. We decided not to list it on the new maps as it was supposed to be gone by now. It’s a world war 2 relic, structurally unsound and not fit for purpose. We already had troops search it before we even called your team.” He elaborated impatiently, glancing over at Penelope as if it were her fault that I was wasting his time.

“That was before he moved her.” I argued, drawing his attention back to me instantly. “What was it used for? The building?”

“Storage mostly. For a long time it was considered a historical landmark, because many of the soldiers that were stationed here in the war wrote about it in their letters home. They would creep in there at night to smoke cigars and drink moonshine.” He began to describe in a bored tone, before pausing abruptly in a chilling manner that allowed all of the colour to drain from his face. “They...they used to call it the barber club.”

“That’s it! That’s where he’s holding her. Penelope, I need these doors open!” I ordered frantically, hardly able to contain the energy that pulsed through my body and she nodded back resolutely.

“I know, my love. I think I’ve got it. Follow my instructions very clearly.” She demanded as I placed myself in front of the cupboard and felt my hands shaking from the pressure.

Step by step, she guided me through the process, disconnecting wires and rerouting things that I barely understood for myself like a pro. Were the circumstances less dire, I would have littered her with praise for her efforts, but I didn’t have the space in my mind for that now. Finally, there was one switch left to flip and the moment that I did, I heard the door click open from across the room.

Before I could even begin to celebrate our success, the sound of an explosion rocketed from nearby and the entire room shook hard enough to knock me from my feet, causing even the Colonel to freeze in shock.

“I...I think that might have come from the barber club.” Penelope mumbled regretfully, whilst the Colonel fought back tears, seeming as if he were in shock. It seemed that even powerful leaders were not immune to the emotion of losing a child and I had to channel my own determination to keep things moving.

“I’m the closest to that building right now. Penelope, find the team and send them to meet me there. We’re gonna need medics, too.” I blurted as I got to my feet with determination, prompting the Colonel to launch into action too as he charged through the door to her side and left her looking flustered.

“Alice, the building is probably already on fire! Just wait for backup.” She pleaded, her eyes filling with tears as she stared into the camera. I stepped away from the laptop to grab a rag to cover my face, planning to protect myself from the smoke that was likely and turned back to face her with fire in my eyes.

“I can’t. Send the team and stay safe, Nels.” I ordered, before rushing out of the room and into the chaos of outside.

As expected, the air was heavy with smoke from multiple directions and people were running around in panic all around me. Now that I had left the well protected room, I was overwhelmed by the blaring sound of sirens and lights flashing from overhead. It was clear that things had already spiralled out of control and I tried to prevent myself from being sucked into the mania. Mentally following the blueprints, I ran in the direction of the unmarked building, being passed by numerous scared civilians who simply lived here due to their partners enlistment and were not equipped for these circumstances.

As I turned the corner to the large old storage unit, I found that Penelope had been correct in placing the most recent explosion and there was already fire spreading within. For a moment, I couldn’t bring myself to move as I stared up at it with a crushing feeling of defeat, but following a bolt of rebellion, I launched myself inside to search for Amanda.

Fortunately, I thought to tie the rag around my face for protection and instead of struggling to breathe, I was taken aback by how little I could see once inside. I placed my hand on the nearest wall and used it to navigate my way as I strained to remember the building’s layout.

The air was agonisingly hot, worse than I had even imagined that it would be and every step that I took felt impossibly hotter. I had no idea how far I would be able to go, as I knew from the plans that this was a vast space and it was impossible to know where exactly Amanda would be hidden, if she hadn’t already died in the blast.

Smoke filled my lungs, causing me to cough heavily and burned at my eyes. I could feel myself growing weaker and though I considered whether I would be able to make it out, I wasn’t willing to turn back yet. My posture shrivelled under the strain, crouching down to avoid the oppressive heat and without warning, I tripped over something very solid.

Somehow I managed to land on my hands and knees to avoid any serious injury and turned to investigate the cause of my fall. From feeling alone, I quickly realised that the object I was touching was, in fact, a person and judging from the size, it was highly likely to be a child. I wished that I could see enough to identify them, before remembering that Amanda had very short, almost graded hair and a quick feel of her head left me feeling confident that I had found her.

Coughing burned at my chest and I knew that I didn’t have much time, so I began to drag her in the direction that I’d come from. It was even harder now to tell where I was going as the fire rapidly spread through the unstable building and it took every ounce of my strength to keep moving with Amanda in tow.

The rag around my face only seemed to be making it harder to breathe now and I ripped it off as I could tell that I was nearing the exit. Unfortunately, my bulletproof vest that I was still wearing constricted my chest uncomfortably, but I couldn’t wiggle out of it without wasting precious moments that I needed to escape. Some of the structure began to collapse behind me and I yelped in panic, hoisting Amanda’s limp form into my arms for protection.

With one final burst of defiance, I stumbled out into the open air, gripping onto her tightly and continued walking into the chaos that stretched in every direction in search of help. Unfortunately, no one was waiting for me outside as I’d hoped and the various explosions were still causing panic as people ran around me in a fluster.

My entire body ached as I fought to drag myself onward, glancing around frantically for someone who could assist us and as I finally ran out of energy, I stopped to look down at the girl that I was carrying. Despite all of the soot and sweat that covered her young features, I still easily recognised her and squeezed her to me warily.

“Don’t give up, kid.” I wheezed, hardly able to get the words out from my burned throat.

Finally, an ambulance skidded into view and I sighed in relief. Closely behind them were my team, including even Penelope, who ran toward me in desperation and I thanked every force I could think of for providing me with colleagues who cared enough to seek me out. I almost burst into tears as two paramedics rushed over to meet me and I assisted in lowering Amanda to the ground so that they could work on her.

“Is she alive? Is she gonna be okay?” I whispered, my voice hoarse and dry despite the power of my emotions and the medics ignored me as they frantically prepared an oxygen tank and mask for her. I watched them impatiently, unable to tear my eyes off the little girl’s delicate form, even as Penelope charged up to examine me.

“Are you hurt? Oh my god, I can’t believe that you went in there! You’re insane!” She scolded, fussing over me with teary eyes as she reached to take my face in her hands, but I batted her off with annoyance.

“Is she alive?!” I repeated, much louder this time despite the pain that it caused me and one of the paramedics looked up at me with annoyance.

Before they could get a single word of explanation, or scolding out, Amanda gasped loudly, spluttering for air and it took the full attention of both paramedics to calm her enough to benefit from the mask. Almost immediately after, Colonel Franklin arrived and dropped by her side in relief, holding her to him whilst she refilled her lungs.

My knees gave way from the weight of my own relief, but fortunately Morgan was quick to catch me as the rest of my team surrounded us and he swept me off my feet, leaving Hotch to wave down another ambulance for me. Though I fought to tell them that I was fine, the only sound that I could manage to make was coughing as my lungs finally gave in to the effects of smoke inhalation and Morgan carried me protectively straight to the back of the second ambulance that parked beside us.

In order to save time, Morgan simply sat me on the back of the open vehicle instead of allowing the medics to take me fully inside and they strapped an oxygen mask to my face before I could protest. Reid pushed past the staff with a determined expression and ripped off the bulletproof vest that I wore in an efficient manner, quickly calculating that it was restricting me and I felt an immediate improvement in my breathing the moment that it was released.

As he stepped back out of my space with a sly smile, I gripped the oxygen mask as if it were the most important thing in my world and allowed myself a few moments to catch my breath, whilst Penelope took a seat beside me to hold my free hand soothingly.

“Reid, Morgan. Keep an eye on Alice. I’ll talk to the Colonel.” Hotch ordered, nodding at me to check that I was okay with him leaving, before he strode over to the first ambulance where Amanda had now been situated for further treatment.

I felt too exhausted to even argue as the two boys took their places in front of me, guarding the entrance to the ambulance and staring down at me with amazement in their faces. Though it was subtle, I caught a brief smirk in Morgan’s face as he peeked at Reid, raising his brows at the vest that he held as if implying something, but I couldn’t bring myself to address it at the moment.

“What were you thinking running in there alone, kid? You have a whole team here. You don’t have to be the big hero.” Morgan scolded, though his tone was still light enough to reveal his amusement at this outcome.

Behind them, a fire truck arrived to begin battling the blaze and it seemed that the military had finally regained control of the situation as they set to work evacuating the alarmed residents that still remained in the area. I watched them with interest, hoping that they had realised the danger of following their usual plan and Reid cleared his throat, catching my eye.

“They’re evacuating to a completely different spot than the agreed plan. Whilst you were locked away, I found the nearest officer and advised them of the risk that the unsub would target the evacuation zone.” He explained, as if reading my mind and when I furrowed my brows in confusion, he chuckled shyly. “Garcia told us that you were worried about it and I noticed that you were watching them. I’m just...I’m sorry that I didn’t come with you.” He added, staring down at his feet guiltily and I removed my mask to address him.

“Reid, you have nothing to apologise for.” I wheezed, cringing immediately at how awful my voice sounded and though Penelope tried to force the mask straight back on, I pushed it away again. “I’m serious. All of these people are safe because you didn’t get trapped with me. You did your job and I’m fine. No harm done.” I insisted, prompting him to drag his gaze back up to me with a smile, which was painfully addictive for me, until we were interrupted by Hotch.

“I’d like a moment to speak to Alice alone.” He announced, his expression as stern as ever.

Reid and Morgan made an excuse about needing to check on Amanda, quickly excusing themselves from the conversation, but Penelope hesitated for a few moments longer, before finally caving to his intense stare. Once we were alone, Hotch crossed his arms in a gesture that indicated I was about to receive a lecture and I gulped in dread.

“Going into that building was reckless. It was a risk with no guaranteed reward, especially for someone who is not a trained field agent.” He began, his tone scolding and I nodded slowly in acceptance, feeling any future opportunities to work with the FBI slipping through my fingers.

“However, you took action despite great personal risk and even considering your lack of experience, you did what needed to be done. You were honest with Garcia about where you were going and what you needed, showing that you trusted your team to have your back. These are not qualities that can be taught. If you had waited, Amanda would likely be dead. You have an enormous amount of potential, Alice and that saved a girl's life today. “

“Thank you, Sir.” I wheezed, coughing from the strain of my words and he softened his expression slightly as he viewed me.

“As you played such a large role in this case, I would appreciate it if you could return to Quantico with the team to complete your reports, so that I can oversee them.” He requested and I nodded without hesitation. “We’ll arrange for someone to take you back to your hotel for the night. I imagine you could do with some rest. You’ll join us on the jet first thing tomorrow.”

“We’ve got one of your boys causing mayhem over here. Your agents are keeping suspiciously schtum on it, territorial as ever. My team wants to stick with the case. I can’t ask for official permission to access Interpol files when we’ve been told to drop it, but if I could just get five minutes in the system…” She trailed off suggestively and I chuckled lightly to myself.

“You’re losing your touch, My Queen. I would have expected you to have found your way in already.” I teased, referring to the name that I’d once known her by as I set to work on bringing up the files of the case. I didn’t need specifics to clarify, I knew exactly which criminal my team was after that had required them to fly to the States to investigate and I heard her sigh.

“Any other time, you know that I would hack first and deny knowledge later, but I can’t plead ignorance on something that we’ve already been clearly told to stay away from.” She groaned, her frustration obvious even over the phone and I began typing rapidly as a plan formulated in my mind.

“I can’t allow access to a foreign agency, my dear. The other techs would rat me out before you’d even found anything.” I explained, chewing on my lip as I entered line after line of code in an attempt to outsmart my colleagues with techniques that would never be used in an official capacity. “However, if a back door was accidentally left open during maintenance, I couldn’t be held responsible for anything that might creep in.” I thought aloud as I sped through screens with a wicked smile, knowing that I could easily avoid any blame this way.

“I’ve assigned all of the correct credentials. Anything that you access will appear as if it’s me doing admin in the case, but be careful. It’s a very limited disguise that won’t last long if anyone starts to dig at it. I can keep our techs busy for a little while, but you know that subtly isn’t my strong suit. Get out before you’re noticed.” I instructed as I entered the last few commands and could already hear her making preparations for the task.

“Oh, sweetheart. I will be gone before they even know what hit them.” She breezed, her voice filled with a confidence that was contagious and I took a deep breath as I allowed it to pass onto me.

“Launching now.” I confirmed, as I entered the final key and my screen began filling with pages of data. “Make it worthwhile. Catch the bastard.”

--⥈--

“You think it’s an inside agent?”

My sector chief stared me down with an intensely disbelieving expression and I struggled to keep my nervousness from showing. It was incredibly nerve wracking to suggest this in a team where I was already the odd one out, but I couldn’t allow my own insecurities to prevent us from getting justice. Ever since I had started here, I’d had the deep rooted feeling that none of my colleagues approved of the decision to recruit someone who should have been arrested and the disdain always seemed most powerful when addressing the man before me.

“That is my belief, Sir.” I answered, hoping that he wouldn’t notice my false confidence and I forced myself to hold his gaze as he crossed his arms. “Valeno has successfully dodged every digital trap that I’ve laid. He’s avoided multiple agencies now and essentially vanished without a trace. It wouldn’t be possible to achieve that without inside knowledge of the measures that we are taking.” I explained, carefully presenting my theory and he remained unmoved as he studied me, causing me to gulp in discomfort.

“Find me proof, Hawthorne. I can’t call a witch hunt based on your bitterness against this team.” Shepard responded coldly, turning his back on me without another word to take a seat at his desk and I gulped down the anger that I felt at this unfair accusation. When I remained rooted to the spot in confusion, he simply gestured for me to show myself out.

I stomped back to my office with my cheeks burning in humiliation and closed the door behind me so that I could sink down against it with my face in my hands. It was endlessly frustrating to have invested so much time into pursuing this trafficking ring, only to have them continuously avoid capture. I was exhausted by this case, unable to remember my last day off since I was assigned to it and I could feel that I was running out of ideas, as I faced a heart breaking lack of support.

A loud alert on my computer pulled me from my wallowing and I rushed into my seat with interest. Flashing on my screen was a warning that made my stomach lurch and I stared at it with wide eyes. After months of silence, someone had finally accessed one of the booby trapped files.

I jumped into action, entering commands at lightning speed and became determined to capture whomever it was that had been defeating me for many long months. They were quick, evading my tactics with ease and I found myself engaged in a maddening game of digital hide and seek in the various systems. It was immediately clear that I was dealing with a professional and I cursed under my breath as I strained to keep up with them, setting fresh traps as I worked in the hope of preventing their escape.

“Oh no you don’t, you little bugger! Not today!” I hissed under my breath, feeling sweet on my brow as I fretted that one wrong move could lose them forever.

As I watched them evade my tracking, then jump straight into blocking me out with expert knowledge, a memory stirred in the back of my mind. The theory rapidly took hold and I wasted no time in throwing out a manoeuvre that I knew would cause a bolt of familiarity if the culprit was who I suspected. Barely moments later, my screen fizzled in error, before displaying a bizarre Tetris overlay that could only be the signature of one person and I gasped, reaching for the phone in a fluster. I could hardly dial the number properly with my shaking hands and stumbled over my words as they answered hurriedly.

“Tell me that you’re the person flooding my system with Tetris right now!” I spat, cutting her off before she could even speak and I heard the noisy typing on the other end rapidly stop.

“I knew it! You’re the only hacker I know that would use Alice in Wonderland riddles to throw me off!” Penelope gasped with excitement and I released a breath that I didn’t even know I had been holding in relief. It had been almost six months since I last heard her voice and although I would usually be pleased to speak to her, I couldn’t help a wave of disappointment at the realisation that I hadn’t caught anyone connected to the case. 

“Well done, Reid! I just almost hacked our best chance of cracking your sicko lady thief. Thank god for your crazy book memory.” I heard her chatting to someone in the background and cleared my throat to regain her attention.

“I’d recognise those moves anywhere. You’re the only person that aggressive in code. What are you doing in my case?” I asked, rubbing at my temples in confusion and though I could hear someone barraging her with questions about who she was talking to, she remained obediently focused on me.

“Your case? I’m researching an abduction for the team.” She revealed, sounding as if she hadn’t even realised what was happening yet and I felt my eyes widen in horror. “Wait a second. Interpol is on this?” She breathed, causing sounds of shock to echo from whoever was in her background and I leapt to my feet as my thoughts bounced around in my mind.

“Penelope, I need you to send me everything you have. Right now! I think you’ve got a much bigger problem on your hands than you even know.” I ordered, flicking through the case files that covered my desk in a fluster and without a moment of hesitation, the details began to pop up on my screen. As I acknowledged the matching signature to the photos on my desk, I held a hand to my mouth in shock. 

“Valeno.” I whispered as adrenaline shot through my entire body and I grabbed my phone as I began marching through the halls of the office. “Get your Unit Chief ready for a call. I’m taking this to the chief now.” I instructed, before hanging up and striding confidently back toward the office that I’d been so rudely dismissed from a short while ago.

Without awaiting permission, I barged inside and switched on the monitor on the wall. I flicked it to the channel that connected to my station and displayed the crime scene photos that were sent by Penelope. At first, Shepard seemed irritated by the brashness of my approach, but as I flicked through the photos with a determined energy, understanding dawned on his features. 

“Look familiar?” I suggested, before spreading the case files out on the table to further explain my point. “Every single detail, exactly the same. Matching victimology, no forensics detected at the scene, no ransom. He’s back.” I insisted, pointing out each fact with a passion that I had rarely allowed to show since I joined this role and he stared up at the screen with conviction.

“Where?”

“Virginia, United States. It’s just like I said. He’s trying to hop jurisdiction to exploit the black spots between agencies and avoid detection.” I explained, feeling equally validated and frustrated that my theory had been correct. This meant that more lives had been destroyed by this man and the realisation caused a wave of nausea to wash over me.

“Sir, the FBI are late to this. They’re only just linking the abductions together. We could get ahead of him this time, if we assisted.” I appealed, holding my hands out in exasperation and he finally tore his eyes from the screen to examine me with an unreadable face.

“You have contact with the team?” He enquired curiously and I nodded in confirmation.

“Yes, Sir. Their Unit Chief is waiting for your call.” I presented, afraid to move a single muscle for risk of damaging the fragile alliance and after a few minutes of tense silence, he finally sighed.

“Set up the meeting through Lucy.” He instructed, causing me to almost run from the room to find our case coordinator, before he called out to stop me.

“If they accept our support, we’ll be heading over to join the team.” He stated calmly and I held my breath as I paused on the spot. “You know his patterns better than anyone. You think you can catch this mole?”

“Yes, Sir.” I asserted, the words escaping my lips before I’d even had the chance to consider them and for the first time, he softened his expression as he viewed me.

“Then you’d better get ready to travel. You’ll be joining us.”

--⥈--

There was something awfully intimidating about entering the FBI headquarters, despite my own professional background. I hesitated at the back of the team, unsure about the etiquette of these kinds of scenarios as I’d never worked on a shared agency case in person, unlike the others. My skills were shared between multiple Interpol teams and as a result, I didn’t have a bond with anyone, especially not in the group that I’d travelled with.

The rest of the agents seemed completely at home as they stepped out of the elevator and made a beeline for the main BAU office, whilst I slowed to a stop in the reception, feeling too overwhelmed to continue.

Everything felt immensely bigger than I was used to and the entire process had been so rushed that I’d hardly had a chance to process any of it. This was my first visit to the States at all in many years and I couldn’t catch up with the emotional effect of this. I brushed the hair that had escaped my scruffy braid out of my face and attempted to straighten out my clothes, convinced that I appeared completely haggard after being made to attend the office straight from a long flight. 

I took a deep breath and forced myself to push open the glass doors to join my team, only to be ambushed before I could.

“Wonderland!” An excitable voice cheered from my side and I turned to find a very colourful woman with a huge mane of bright blonde hair barrelling toward me.

“Penelope Von Troublemaker.” I chuckled as she swept me into a hug that almost knocked me from my already unsteady feet. She smelt fruity and fresh as she squeezed the life out of me and I wheezed for breath.

“It’s wonderful to see you at last, but I really do need to breathe, my dear.” I wheezed, prompting her to quickly jump back, leaving only her hands on my shoulders as she beamed at me.

“You’re so pretty, even more so in person! And classy too. Look at you in your head to toe black chic. I love it.” She breathed, scanning my full appearance with excitement radiating off her in waves and I managed a nervous smile in response. I still remembered Penelope as a late teen with an attitude problem, who often engaged me in fierce competition and was glad to find that adulthood had encouraged her to embrace her natural sparkle.

“Sir. I’m going to take Alice straight to my office to set up, okay? Cool. Thanks.” She called over toward the rest of the office carelessly, pulling me along behind her without even awaiting a response and I couldn’t help giggling to myself as I followed.

Penelope’s office was exactly what I had imagined, full of the same sunshine attitude that she radiated. Her desk was littered with cute figures, bright photos and pen pots filled with fuzzy tipped biros. She had more screens mounted all over the walls than I could even have applied for permission for at Interpol and I noticed that there was a small space at one end of the surface which was completely clear, with a second office chair tucked under it.

“You’re gonna be right here, next to me. If we’re gonna beat this guy, I figured we should team up, just like the old days.” She explained with a fond smile and I felt myself relaxing already in her warm company. “Just go ahead and drop your laptop stuff there and then I can show you where to store the rest of your stuff until we can take you to your hotel.” She instructed, indicating to my small case.

“Oh. This is everything that I have with me.” I answered bashfully, shuffling inside to begin setting up my laptop in the space indicated, whilst Penelope studied me with confusion.

“You don’t have a separate go bag?” She investigated, seeming thoroughly shocked by how little I had with me and I shrugged in return.

“I don’t really ‘go’, Penelope.” I chuckled as I busied myself with plugging everything in and noticed that her expression seemed concerned now. “I didn’t have much notice. I grabbed all of my casefiles and the laptop stuff that I could carry, and then just whatever personal items I could think of. You’ll have to forgive me if I’m not as well presented as you expected. I don’t travel much nowadays.” I added, hoping that this would settle her curiosity but instead she took a seat beside me and scrutinised me thoroughly.

“Why not? Hotch and Gideon even send me out when I’m needed and I don’t have a psychology degree.” She commented as she raised her brows at me, as if she needed to remind me of my own education and I simply shrugged avoidantly. “Are Interpol not making good use of you, Sugar? Whose career do I need to ruin?” She threatened, already seeming riled by the idea and I smiled at her protectiveness.

“It’s more complicated than that. Let’s crack this case and then we get into personal catch ups later, okay?” I suggested, much to her disappointment and my relief, we settled into work.

We spent the next hour comparing information and plotting possible traps, whilst Shepard and the rest of my team busied themselves with integrating into the local team and finding places to work. It was refreshing to work alongside someone for a change and having her input prompted new ideas. 

After a while, the phone rang and Penelope leaned over to answer it on speakerphone so that she could continue examining the document that was between us.

“Hey, baby girl. Tell me you’ve got some good news for me.” A deep voice crooned, causing my attention to bolt upward in confusion, only to find Penelope smirking in satisfaction.

“Well, gorgeous, that I do. I am still 100% single, interested and available for dinner whenever you need.” She announced, earning a chuckle from the man on the line and I quirked a brow at her inquisitively. 

“Also, the Interpol team just arrived. So I have now upgraded to the office of Unrivalled Girl Power, baby.” She added with delight and I felt my curiosity growing by the minute as she spoke.

“That was fast. Alright, Gideon and I will make our way back now. This lead was a bust.” He confirmed, revealing that he was actually a member of her team and I raised my brows in surprise at her demeanour.

“Don’t keep me waiting too long.” She drawled in a husky tone, before hanging up and attempting to return to her work with a smile. I playfully slapped her hands away from the files and thinned my eyes at her.

“I’m sorry. Are you really going to try to gloss over that? Explain, please!” I insisted, leaning closer to her in fascination and she chuckled as she shook her head dismissively. “Who was that, Penelope?” I gasped, feeling as if I might explode from the mystery and she attempted to swat me away.

“That was Derek Morgan. He’s one of the behavioural analysts and a dear friend.” She began, only causing my brows to raise impossibly further and she leaned closer into me to lower her voice. “He’s also an absolute hunk of a man, but you’ll see that in a bit.” She winked, suppressing a cheeky cackle and I felt my mouth drop open in shock.

“And do you speak to all of your dear friends like that, or is he special? He sounds special.” I hissed, grilling her like an excited teenager again, falling straight back into our old friendship as if no time had passed at all and she laughed heartily.

“Oh, please. Nothing wrong with a little workplace flirtation to brighten the day. You know what I mean! You work in Europe. You’re surrounded by romance.” She muttered dismissively as she returned her attention to her screens and I shook my head.

“I absolutely do not! You have no idea, Nels. Europe is not inherently romantic.” I drawled, rolling my eyes at her ignorance and she glanced back at me with a disbelieving smirk. 

“I’m serious. Most of the men at Interpol either think that they’re the real life incarnation of James Bond, collecting as many Bond girls as possible, or they’re married to their work. It’s honestly rather dull. Nothing like you and Agent Morgan. That conversation sounded like a lot more than just playful banter to me. You two have chemistry!” I insisted, a smug smile filling my lips as I viewed her and she quickly brushed me off.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ally.” She breathed, the slightest hint of a blush filling her cheeks and I made a mental note to revisit this later. “We need to get our strategy ready. Hotch will call a meeting once Morgan and Gideon get back.”

“Garcia, do you have the suspect list that I asked you to pull? I want to run through it before the meeting.” A voice interrupted from the door and I turned to find a tall, slim young man waiting keenly.

“Oh, yes! Let me just get it printed for you.” Penelope answered, pushing the files aside to access her keyboard. “I’m sorry. I got distracted with helping Alice to settle in.” She added, before glancing at me to realise that he and I were looking at each other with interest.

“Ah, of course! Alice, this is Dr Spencer Reid, one of our behavioural analysts. Reid, this is Alice Hawthorne from Interpol. She’s a very old friend.” Penelope introduced with a flourish before returning to her task and I jumped to my feet to shake his hand, only for him to wave awkwardly instead. Though it was an interesting quirk, I was relieved as I hated contact with strangers and was glad that I would have at least one less person that I would have to endure it with. 

“You’re the hacker with the Alice in Wonderland riddles?” He offered, viewing me with interest and I felt my cheeks turning pink the moment that I met his hypnotising hazel eyes. Now I recognised his voice from my call with Garcia and remembered the questions he’d been asking in the background after his rather embarrassing introduction to my work.

“Um, yes. I don’t usually do that. I had a feeling that it was Penelope and I knew that she would understand that. Or at least, I hoped that she would.” I offered, shuffling awkwardly on the spot and he nodded in understanding.

He was dressed remarkably smart compared to many of the other FBI agents, but still had an air of his own style about him that interested me. His neatly combed back hair complimented his handsomely chiselled features and I soon found myself struggling for something to say. I already considered myself to be somewhat socially challenged, but especially when it came to interacting with someone who was unexpectedly well matched to everything that I found attractive, I was a hot mess.

“It’s an interesting choice. Did you know that it was actually rated as one of the world's most influential novels? It’s full of nonsensical rhymes that could easily be used to create a rather complicated ruse, as not many people would know the answers offhand.” He complimented in what I assumed was an attempt to make me feel better about my rather childish tactics and I smiled in appreciation of his kindness.

“There’s actually a rare disorder named after it that is characterised by distortions of visual perception, the body image and the experience of time.” He began to explain and I couldn’t keep myself from interrupting him in excitement.

“Todd’s Syndrome, or dysmetropsia, right?” I interjected, causing his brows to shoot up in surprise and Penelope actually paused what she was doing to turn and look at us both in disbelief. “I’ve never encountered it, but I did study it in depth. It was actually the topic of my dissertation at university.” I clarified, causing a wide smile to spread across his face as he considered me and I could feel Penelope smirking at me from my peripheral vision.

“Your suspect list, Reid?” She offered, clearing her throat as she leaned toward him with a piece of paper and he seemed to shake himself back to reality to take it.

“Yes. Thank you, Garcia.” He blustered, taking it from her in a distracted manner and running his finger down the page at an impossible speed to have actually read anything. Before I could question this, he glanced back up in shock and his posture became alarmed. “I have to get this to Hotch. Nice to meet you, Alice!” He called as he rushed from the room and left Penelope and I silently communicating our confusion to each other.

“Okay, Miss Thing. You can’t sit there and tell me that you don’t flirt at work, and then do that right in front of me.” She crooned, looking after Reid with a mischievous appreciation and I turned back to face her with a shrug, hoping that I could conceal my bashful reaction. “Oh, you want to play innocent? I see how it is. Well, I’m not fooled. I know what I saw and I’m not one to forget.”

“Do you have any idea how much paperwork a report of that nature would cause me? Not to mention that it would destroy the man’s career.” He stated accusingly, as if the entire issue were my fault and I struggled to maintain my strength in the face of his judgement. Of course he would blame me for inconveniencing him, rather than the person who was actually causing the problem. 

“I cannot abide two agents in my team that can’t be assigned together. We are all adults here, dealing with matters of national security. This is not a classroom. You need to figure this out between you. You can make a start on that during this case.” He added firmly, unwilling to compromise on his earlier instruction, as if I hadn’t just reached out to him for help in a completely reasonable manner and I furrowed my brows in confusion.

“And if I file an official complaint, instead?” I suggested carefully, burying the terror that I felt for his reaction and for a few moments, the room fell silent as he scowled at me. 

The air around me felt hot, my clothes suffocating as I battled with the anxiety that screamed in the face of his doubt. It wasn’t the first time that I hadn’t been believed, but it was every bit as heart-breaking as it had been when I was a teenager.

“Hawthorne. You didn’t earn this position. You were sent here against our advice and have been incredibly fortunate to find yourself in a job, instead of a cell. Consider very carefully whether you wish to make an enemy of me.”

--⥈--

If I rolled my eyes any harder, I was pretty sure that they would disappear into the back of my head, never to be seen again. 

Vidal had made himself entirely comfortable both in my office and the video call with the BAU, and I could hardly get a word in edgeways between his supposedly expert opinions. His presence was suffocating, as he always chose to work within my personal space and there was no effective way of containing him to a single part of the room.

The strain was clear even in the rest of the team, who already seemed tired by his overbearing suggestions and general disregard of anyone else’s opinion. It was painfully clear how little he thought of our American counterparts and I began to realise that he had little regard for the science of behavioural analysis at all. 

I rubbed at my temples in an effort to concentrate, feeling immensely distracted by my own stress and was acutely aware that each and every minute that we wasted lowered the chances of ever recovering these girls alive. I almost jumped out of my seat at the sudden contact on my face and found that Vidal was pushing back my hair, his body alarmingly close to mine.

“Try not to stress, ma poupée. It would be a terrible crime to cause wrinkles in such a pretty face.” He muttered in a manner that I was sure he intended to be seductive, but unintentionally revealed a level of misogyny that caused a wave of disgust to pass through my entire body. 

Addressing me as a doll was a frightening insight into how he saw me, as a fragile inanimate object that he could possess and a shiver ran down my spine at the thought.

“People are suffering. I have every right to be stressed if I want to!” I spat in frustration, fidgeting to create as much space between us as I could, which was limited as I was trapped between him and the wall. 

Everything about the way that he interacted with me felt like a trap and my reactions were often similar to that of a caged animal. 

“Any luck with the interviews of the first two girls?” I enquired, as I addressed the webcam and the team seemed equally as frazzled by what they had just witnessed as I felt.

“We tried guiding them through a cognitive interview, but they weren’t able to recover any memories.” Morgan explained evenly, his tone seeming distracted and I sighed in disappointment. “Toxicology indicates that they were dosed with rohypnol. They also found some traces of chloroform on their skin. The unsubs must be using the chloroform to subdue them. They might even use it a second time to ensure that they don’t wake up when they’re being taken to the dump site. They’re planning ahead for these girls to be released, but they don’t want to take any chances that they could guide us to wherever they are holding them.”

“You believe there to be something that connects these girls, oui? Have you investigated their employment records?” Vidal interrogated and I battled to keep myself from rolling my eyes again. 

Though I had no doubt that he could be useful, his lack of faith in the team meant that rather than lending us his expertise, he was attempting to make us rehash steps that had already been completed at the beginning of the investigation and I tired of his implied judgement.

“I have dug into every aspect of these girls' lives. There's absolutely nothing that links them together. It’s like they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.” I answered thoughtfully, staring at the data with desperation and felt as if I were missing something glaringly obvious.

“Perhaps it is as simple as chance. The suspect simply has chosen a hunting ground and is taking any woman who crosses it alone?” Vidal suggested, completely disregarding all of the profiling that had been done this far and I couldn’t bring myself to address his ignorance again. Fortunately, Reid cleared his throat and cleaned closer to the webcam.

“Typically, this type of offender would not leave his selection of victims completely to chance. When dealing with a sexual sadist, the fantasy is a core factor of their MO. Who they target is every part as important as the act itself. Due to the deviation in victimology, it’s highly probable that we are looking for a multi ethnicity group.” Reid explained, rescuing me from having to explain again that there was more to profiling than simply theorising at random and I was relieved when he continued, allowing me a few moments of peace from Vidal’s invasive suggestions. 

“Statistically, only 17% of sexual sadists will choose to work alongside another person. They wouldn’t want to risk someone else ruining the fantasy. These unsubs defy almost all regular patterns for this type of crime.”

“Is it possible that is because you people are looking for the wrong type of person, hmm?” Vidal accused, looking directly at the camera with disdain and I bit my lip in an effort to contain my anger at his attitude. 

“Who is to say what kind of sexual preference these sick men would have? They could have an interest in women of many kinds. Why only pursue one kind of woman, when you can conquer them all, non? You are limiting your options based on the opinion of one young man!” He ranted, indicating towards Reid dismissively and I felt my patience snap.

“Doctor Reid has not formed his opinion based on his own imagination. These statistics come from in depth studies of these types of offenders and are our best tool for identifying who it is that could commit a crime of this nature.” I snapped, sitting up to view him with frustration and he widened his eyes at me as I fell into a rant. 

“It is absolutely counterproductive to simply guess at circumstances, rather than using the evidence that is before us. Each and every detail is a piece of the puzzle, some more important than others. This team are the experts at identifying them, such as the fact that not all the victims are white indicating multiple unsubs, one of which is also not white, so I would suggest that you learn from them, Vidal. It is a known fact that sexual predators almost never offend outside of their own race. Look it up!” I lectured, my words falling out in a bitter tone before I could stop myself and he simply stared back at me in complete shock.

“Excuse me.” I blurted in embarrassment. 

I could feel the eyes of the team on me as even the room that they sat in fell silent and my cheeks flushed with heat at my blatant defence of Reid specifically. My gaze automatically sought him out, noticing that he seemed particularly shocked and even bashful at the attention, only worsening my humiliation. I jumped to my feet instinctively and rushed from the room to calm myself.

--⥈--

The last few months had been intensely stressful, as I struggled to balance the importance of keeping my job and keeping my sanity. I knew that I couldn’t approach Shepard for help again. If anything, I worried that would only cause him to schedule me to work with Vidal more, as he seemed to be under the impression that exposure to each other would solve the problem, when in reality it was only worsening the situation. 

My anxiety felt constant and it was invading my dreams on a regular basis. Most of the time, I had the sensation that I was being watched, even when at home and I didn’t seem to be able to shake it.

A knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts and I turned sharply to find an unfamiliar woman standing in the doorway to my office. She was brunette and pretty, with a kind expression and I couldn’t help noticing how starkly she contrasted with any members of my assigned teams. Though she had a strength about her, everything in her demeanour seemed warm and welcoming in a way that stood out in our often cold working environment.

“Sorry. I hope I’m not interrupting.” She wore a friendly smile as she stepped into the room and I remained suspiciously wary of her, unsure what she could want from me. “I have a search that I need doing, but all of my techs seem to have gone home for the night. Yours was the only office with the light still on.”

“Oh, yeah. Habit. I pretty much live here nowadays.” I answered awkwardly, feeling as if I were being lured into some kind of trap as I’d grown accustomed to being shunned by everyone. The appearance of a random stranger who addressed me like any other person seemed entirely too good to be true. 

“What can I do for you?” I asked, prompting her to hand me a piece of paper with a list of criteria.

I turned back to my desk and began setting up the parameters on my various systems, feeling relieved to focus on work rather than the way that she studied me with interest. It occurred to me how unusual it was for anyone else to be in the office at this time of night and began to wonder if she was simply a workaholic, or if she was avoiding something too.

“I, umm...I actually hoped that I would get a chance to speak to you at some point, Hawthorne.” She admitted, settling herself against the wall to ensure that she left me plenty of personal space and I glanced at her questioningly over my shoulder. The fact that she’d taken the time to learn my name before coincidentally bumping into me as the last person in the office made the hairs on my arms stand on end. 

“I’m working with a new agent who was transferred to my team recently and I’m led to believe that the two of you are close. His name is Étienne Vidal.”

My stomach instinctively lurched at the name and as I could feel her analysing my reactions, I battled to keep my nerves hidden. Thoughts raced through my mind as I struggled to decide how to address this and part of me was curious as to exactly what was being said around the office about him and I.

“I wouldn’t explain it that way.” I muttered, fidgeting in my seat and the other agent thinned her eyes at me. “I’ve worked a few cases with him and he’s a very friendly man, but I really wouldn’t say that I know him at all.” I answered dismissively as I returned my attention to printing out the results that she had requested and she sighed thoughtfully, allowing us to fall into silence for a few moments whilst I worked.

“You’re not the only one to describe him as friendly. There are several women across his previous teams who have used the same words. Some even say overly-friendly.” She explained carefully and I avoided meeting her eyes as I considered this.

“It doesn’t seem like any higher management is interested in addressing it. I would report it myself, but thanks to my family background he’s always appropriate with me. None of the others are confident enough to talk about it openly. All I need is for one woman to speak up and I could protect them all.” She added, her voice growing passionate as she spoke and I rushed to grab the results sheet, passing it to her with a weak smile.

“I wish that I could help, but as I said, I don’t really know him.” I responded firmly, holding my ground against the prying conversation and she smiled sympathetically at me as she took the paper. Straightening up, she pulled a card from her pocket and handed it to me.

“If you think of anything that could be useful, my line is always available.” She emphasised, her kind eyes boring into my face as I stared at the card, feeling immediately conflicted.

Although I desperately wanted for the harassment to stop, I was afraid of the power that Shepard held over my life and knew all too well the dangers of rejecting men like Vidal. Subconsciously, I ran a finger along the scar on my lip and flinched at the memory that popped into my mind. 

“Prentiss?” I called after the woman, reading her name from the card and she paused in the doorway to look back at me. “Thank you. It will help these women a lot to know that somebody cares.”

--⥈--

I rubbed at my eyes as I battled to stay awake and flicked the page on my calendar to July. Two months had passed since Prentiss began quietly investigating Vidal and things were only continuing to grow worse. He’d progressed from leaving flowers in my office, to just last night having them delivered to my apartment and as a result, I’d been unable to sleep.

The entire night had passed with me staring at the door in a state of terror and I was already beginning to recognise signs of hypervigilance in my behaviour. I knew that I was spiralling as a result of my past trauma, but felt completely powerless to stop it and had already considered running away many times. 

An alert popped up on my computer and the moment that I clicked it, Penelope’s smiling face filled my screen in a video call.

“Well, hello my little pumpkin pie! I am here on your screen as the ultimate bearer of wonderful news!” She declared, her enthusiasm soothing my nerves and encouraging a rare smile from me. “We have a case that requires your expertise and our very snazzy leader has pulled enough strings to have you assigned to it.”

“Another consultation? I’m sure Shepard will be delighted.” I remarked, pushing back my scruffy hair from my face and feeling immediately stressed at the idea that Shepard might punish me simply for being requested again. I glanced back up at the screen nervously and noticed that her expression only grew more smug.

“Au contraire, mon chérie. Even Interpol’s own Satan can’t stop this one. The request for our help has come from the top military brass and they’ve demanded that we bring the best. And when it comes to abductions, that’s you. So pack your bags, Beautiful, because you’re coming to visit.” She announced, waving her hands around in a little cheer and I stared back at her in disbelief. She was clearly confident in the arrangements to be presenting it in this manner, but I couldn’t imagine for a moment that Shepard would allow me out of his sight.

“I hate to break it to you, Nels, but Shepard will never release me for duty.” I advised regretfully as I fidgeted in my seat, wishing that I could seize the opportunity to get as far from this office for a couple of days, but instead of looking discouraged, Penelope beamed.

“Shepard, Schmepard. It’s already been authorised by his superior’s superior.” She flaunted, seeming thoroughly impressed with herself and I felt my mouth drop open in shock. I couldn’t believe that anyone would bother going to such lengths simply to secure my services and failed to even form a response. 

“Can I get a ding dong, the witch is dead?! Now, I hope you took Hotch’s advice and packed a go back because you have a plane to catch. We’ll see you there!”

--⥈--

It felt strange to say that a sleeping pill induced semi-coma that spanned across two flights was the best sleep that I’d had in months, but it was true. For the first time in ages, I didn’t have to worry about anyone following me and the relief of knowing that, at least for a short time, I was out of Interpol’s reach was incredible. 

Unlike my previous visit where I was accompanied by a team, I was taken to my hotel first and given the opportunity to shower, change my clothes and generally make myself presentable, before having to meet the team at a nearby military base.

I changed into a pair of dark grey, checked capri trousers, a plum coloured turtleneck top and my trusty black, high top converses. Though I would deny it if ever questioned, knowing that I would likely see Reid again motivated me to apply slightly more makeup than usual in an effort to conceal the months of sleep deprivation that I’d endured and I pulled my long, brunette hair into a half up, half down style, before adding a small ribbon to the back.

Penelope called to confirm that I had now passed the necessary security checks to be allowed onto the base and that a driver was being sent to collect me as we spoke. I rushed to pack a small satchel with my glasses, phone and a few other necessary bits, grabbed the case full of equipment that I’d travelled with and made my way down to the foyer to meet my driver.

Flying into California instead of meeting the team in Virginia had extended my flight time by a fair amount, but also allowed me to arrive not far behind them. I knew that I could count on Penelope to have already made a start on securing us with a work space, after she had briefed me that the leading sergeant had insisted that access to their systems could only be granted on site. It seemed strange to know that even Penelope had been bought along because of this, but at least it reassured me that I was right to have been included in joining them here.

A young agent met me in the hotel reception, taking my case as he led me to a large black SUV that practically screamed FBI. I hopped into the back, feeling too awkward to ride shotgun with a stranger and the agent remained professionally quiet on the journey whilst I busied myself with studying the case files again. 

Inwardly, I was on edge, as I knew that the stakes of this case were especially high when dealing with someone as powerful as the father of our missing girl and I hoped that I would be able to meet the team's expectations of me.

The face of the victim stared up at me from the photo, tugging on my heartstrings. She was only thirteen years old, raised in a military family without a mother and now, she had been taken by someone who seemed to have a grudge against her father. It made me furious to see children blamed for the choices of adults and as I felt a fire burning in my stomach, I knew one thing for certain; I would do everything in my power to bring this girl home.