counting stars | criminal minds [discontinued]

2 8 | S A F E

"she is screaming for me to help, and i'm not there"

It was six more hours of retracing their steps and looking over suspects and adjusting the profile and looking for the truck, hoping for a break in the case. It was three in the morning and everyone was exhausted, but they weren't slowing down. They were wide awake and running on countless cups of coffee. The longer they went without finding something helpful, the worse they all became.

Reid stared at the map, trying to find a hint in the geographical profile. JJ stood by his side, and when he started pulling at his hair in frustration, she took his hand.

"We'll find her, Spence," she said softly. Despite her own feelings, JJ did her best to keep her head. She had plenty of practice dealing with families who were missing their children, and that was what Florence was like to them.

"But what if we don't?" Reid asked, closing his eyes. "W - what if we—"

JJ cut him off by hugging him tightly. He tucked his head in her shoulder and stopped trying to fight off the tears he had yet to shed. She was also doing her best not to think about her last real conversation with Florence on the plane ride back. She had confessed to no longer wanting to die, and now she was on the brink of it. It tore JJ apart to think about it.

In another room, Morgan sat on the phone with Garcia, keeping her company while she tried to get a lock on the video while he looked through past crime reports that fit the profile.

"Are Prentiss, Rossi, and Hotch still..." Garcia trailed off, sniffing.

"Yeah," he said, sighing. "They keep watching it to see if they catch something new. I don't think there's anything else to get from it though."

"God, I couldn't even stomach it the first time," she mumbled, wiping her eyes. "And her screams at the end? D - Derek, she's just a kid. She's my baby girl and I can't - I can't lose her."

Garcia started to cry all over again and Moran tried to comfort her the best he could over the phone. It was difficult though, as he himself was trying not to lose hope as well.

"Help — HOTCH! PLEASE!"

"Again," Hotch said, not taking his eyes away from the screen. He had removed his bracelet from Florence and had been anxiously toying with it in his hands.

"Aaron," Dave said softly. "You're torturing yourself. We've altered the profile as much as we can with what's in the video."

"He's right," Prentiss said, sighing. She flipped through the notes they had made while rewatching the video. "Let's turn it off and focus on what we know."

Hotch still didn't look away from the screen. Rossi sent a look to Prentiss, who nodded before closing the laptop. Rossi put a hand on his shoulder.

"After Foyet, she told me that she trusted me with her life," Hotch said, closing his eyes. "And now it's in danger and I can't find her. She is screaming for me to help, and I'm not there."