Her Normal

Chapter 42

"He's back," I said, shock and terror filling my voice as they crashed over me like waves. Spencer looked angry, like he was going to explode any minute. His eyes flickered from me to the tv ever few seconds. "What are we going to do?"

"We aren't doing anything," he told me sternly. "I will take care of this with the rest of the team. You're taking the kids and going somewhere safe."

"I can't leave," I said. "It's worse for me to be away from you than to stay. How will I get help if none of you are there?"

"We'll find a way," Spencer muttered. "There is absolutely no way I'm letting you stay here while Jason is on the lose though. Absolutely not."

"I think this should be a group decision," I crossed my arms. "We can discuss it with the team and see what they think."

Spencer nodded. He knew I wasn't going to be lenient about this. But by the same token, I knew that I had to do what was best to protect the kids from Jason; no matter what the cost or distance. I'd cross seas to keep them away from him.

"Let's go then." Spencer took my hand and we left. I felt over exposed the second I walked out of the door. There was too much to be worrying about. He drove us to the BAU where we joined the team. Upon arrival, Morgan was waiting at the doors to ensure a safe arrival.

Everyone was talking about it until we walked into the room. They fell silent and looked at me, unsure of what to expect. I stayed quiet. I was unsure how to react. I was about to ask about the kids until I saw them come walking into the bullpen from the break room.

"Look, mommy and daddy!" Eli pointed at us. They smiled and ran over to Spencer and I. I knelt down to their level and gave them both a hug and a kiss. I felt better having my kids in the same area as me, knowing that I could keep an eye on them. Spencer took his turn giving them hugs and kisses.

"Okay you two, I'm going to need you to stay right here," I gestured to my desk, which was easily viewable from the conference room so I could keep an eye on them. I set out some stuff for them to do and they were immediately engrossed in their own activities. The adults went to the conference room to discuss the situation.

"Okay," Garcia sighed. "So as you've all heard from one source or another, our friend Jason Freeman has broken out of prison. As of right now, no one has seen or heard anything of him. My guess is he's laying low until he's got some info on you." She gestured at me. I hung my head and looked at my shaking hands. I hated that the team would have to spend so much time and attention on me until Jason was secured.

"What am I going to do?" I asked, more-so to Hotch than anyone else. I knew that he was most likely thinking of Haley, and was trying to figure out how to keep the past from repeating itself. He frowned for a second.

"The biggest focus of this whole thing is your kids," he looked out to them at my desk. They were giggling until they saw him looking at them. Eli turned back to his paper. He was scared of Hotch sometimes. But Ellie beamed at him and waved, earning a small hint of a smile and a nod from Hotch.

"Look, I'll do absolutely anything to keep them out of Jason's reach," I said. "I'll go wherever I need to or do what I have to, but I can't let him get to them."

"Does he have any kind of weakness for children?" He asked.

"No," I shook my head, grimacing. "He'll do whatever it takes to get to me, even if he has to..." I trailed off, lost in the thought and the awful images going through my head.

"Huh-uh. No. That's not happening," Morgan snapped. I gave him a look and he shook his head.

"For now, I would suggest definitely laying low," Hotch said. "I'm going to suggest you do something to change your appearance so that you're not so easily recognized. Keep the kids in the house as much as you possibly can. We're going to treat this like we did your stalker. There's going to be an agent with you at all times, regardless of where you are."