EMILY'S POV
I'M NOT EXACTLY SURE WHAT HAPPENED. One minute we are on our way to an address to get Scratch, and the next we're stopped in the middle of the road. A truck came flying into us and it all went dark.
I got out of the car and took a look at the scene. It was bad. The car's were completely totaled. No one made it out without a scratch on them.
He ambushed us. This entire thing was a trap.
I saw Garcia and Matt Simmons coming up the road.
"Emily! Are you okay?" Garcia asked. Her voice was hazy in my ears. I couldn't see straight. Things were blurry. I looked down to see my hand bleeding.
"I-I don't know." I let out.
Everyone was slowly making their way out of the cars. I saw Rossi, JJ and Luke. I still didn't see Delia.
Garcia stopped in her tracks at the car Delia was supposed to be in. I rushed over to her to see Stephen's lifeless body in the back seat. I gasped.
No no this isn't happening.
I peered to the front seat where Delia was and didn't see her.
Oh my god.
"Delia?" I called. No one called back and the panic was starting to set in. I frantically looked around both SUV's and in the road and she was no where to be seen.
"Delia!" I screamed.
"W-What? Where is she?" JJ asked as she approached me.
"I don't know! She's not here!" I yelled. I just kept looking. This can't be happening.
"Where's Delia?" Rossi shouted.
"We can't find her." JJ replied.
This can't be happening.
There is no way he took her.
—
DELIA'S POV
Brightness.
That's all I saw when I opened my eyes. There was a light shining right in my face. Where am I? I carefully looked around to see I was hooked up to a monitor.
Am I in the hospital? Why the hell would I be here?
This didn't look like a hospital, though.
A man came in my view. Everything was blurry.
"Where am I?" I groggily asked him.
"You were in a car crash. A bad one." He said. He then held up his hand that was covered in my blood. I gasped. Is that mine?
Wait. I was in a car crash?
"Oh my god. What happened?" I asked frantically. I looked down to see I was in a sling. I could barely move.
"Your SUV sustained the brunt of the impact. Specifically, you sustained it. Do you remember?" He asked and took off his mask.
I tried to think but I couldn't think of anything. "No, I-" Then it came back in flashes. Oh my god. The tires. The truck. Scratch ambushed us. "Wait, yeah. My team." I said. I automatically got nervous.
Where's Emily?
"Take it easy, Agent Parks. We got you stabilized but you need to stay put." He told me.
I'm not in a hospital. Why are there beeping monitors and surgical tools?
"Where am I? This isn't a hospital. I've been in enough hospitals. I know how they sound, how they smell, so where the hell am I?" I demanded. I was terrified.
"You're being taken care of. We both are." He said and went to walk away. What? What does that even mean? Where am I?
"Wait what-what does that mean? I don't understand you." I tried. My voice was giving out at every single word. Why is this happening to me?
Am I even alive?
I heard the man talking to someone else.
I tried to move but I couldn't. I can't fight.
I saw a figure move toward me. When the face came into view, it all made sense. I'd recognize that slimey rat-face anywhere.
Scratch fucking kidnapped me.
"Well, hello Delia." He spoke with a smirk on his face. Oh, you've got to be kidding me.
"Son of a bitch." I let out. I knew something was going on.
"It's nice to meet you too, finally." He sneered.
"Did you grab all of us, huh? Are we all here? Emily! JJ!" I called. It hurt to yell. I winced as soon as it came out. He has me right where he wants me.
Completely defenseless.
"No. It's just you. Emily and your team is fine, by the way. Excuse me. I take that back. The truck I drove into your team did kill SSA Stephen Walker." He paused. I wanted to start crying. Stephen was such a good man. I stopped myself. I refuse to let him see me cry. "Whiplash. Tragic. Leaves behind a wife and two children, I believe."
"No." I muttered. I shook my head. Don't cry, Delia. Don't do it.
"Come on, Delia. It's okay to show your emotions." He taunted.
I stared him right in the eye. "I will make sure you fry for this."
"Will you? Well, maybe you should take a look at yourself first." He said. He then moved the blanket off of my lap.
He had this contraption that stabbed nails into my legs. As soon as I saw it I gasped.
I'm never going to walk again.
Oh my god. This isn't happening.
"Because from where I'm standing, you won't be doing much of anything for the rest of your life." He said.
I looked down at my legs again. How did this happen?
Why?
My team won't let him get away with this. I may die in here, but he won't get away with this.
I don't want to die. I want to live. I want to be a parent to Rosie and be a wife and be unit chief.
Emily, please get me the hell out of here.
—
EMILY'S POV
I was numb walking through the halls of the BAU. I made them bring me here.
If he has Delia, I need to get her back. I can't let her die with him. She doesn't deserve that.
She doesn't deserve any of this.
You need to pull it together, Emily. Delia needs you. You need to stay strong.
Luke and Spencer met me at the BAU.
"Emily..." Spencer trailed off. He saw the look on my face. I was terrified.
"Starting now, you're on the team. I don't care if it's official. We need you." I ordered. My voice cracked. He nodded.
"We're going to find her." Luke whispered.
We better. We've been through too much.
I can't lose her now.
We need to help Delia. I need to put whatever I'm feeling into finding her alive.
—
DELIA'S POV
I closed my eyes and tried to breathe. I was whispering under my breath.
"Taking a little mindfulness break?" Scratch asked as he was clipping his nails. When I didn't answer him and just stared at him, he spoke again. "Trying to control your breathing? That's smart. That'll keep you sane...and I need you sane." I looked at him funny. "Oh, how rude. Excuse me." He said and wiped his dirty nail clippings.
I don't care if I don't have access to my legs. I will kills him with my own two hands.
"Look, I'm only alive because you want something, so what do you want?" I demanded.
"Information that only you have." He paused. "Well, Emily would too but, I wanted to meet you instead." He replied. I'm flattered.
"What are you waiting for, then? Dose me with your drugs, the ones that make me see whatever delusion you suggest, and I'll tell you what you want." I spoke.
"Hmmm, I would love nothing more than that. Unfortunately, in your current physical condition, the sevoflurane and scopolamine would send you into a stroke." He replied. Oh, lovely.
"Guess we're at a stalemate then." I sneered.
"No, I still have drugs that can make you talk. Just different drugs." He said and held up a vile. "This is morphine. This is what is making your life very livable right now. Without this...your body will be on fire, and then you really will tell me everything I want. No delusion necessary." He said and walked away.
I took this time with him gone to steady my breathing. You're strong, Delia. You can handle this. The team is looking for you.
—
EMILY'S POV
The more I think about what Delia must be going through, the more I want to collapse and scream.
Garcia and Matt entered the room. I had to let Penelope take the lead on this one. We all put our phones in a box and shut it.
"Okay, listen. I think Scratch has been listening to us. Even with our cellphones on. That box is something I got Rossi last year. It blocks out cell and radio signals." Penelope explained.
"That's why Rossi was so cagey at the hospital. Alright, let's find these tickets." Luke said and went to go for a drawer.
I held out my hands for the keys and did it myself. Stephen worked this case without us. It's why we added him to the team. We hid a full drawer in Rossi's office.
I took out one of the files.
"What is that?" Luke asked.
"Stephen was brought onto the team for one reason. That was to catch Scratch. That's his entire investigation into him. He kept his records offsite, updating Delia, Rossi and I through hard copies." I explained with a deep breath.
I know this is hard, but you need to focus, Emily.
"If it's off the cloud, Scratch can't hack it." Spencer replied.
"This was eyes-only clearance but I had a feeling something was going to happen. That's why I made sure Matt knew about this all. So we'd have someone outside of the BAU who knew about it. That's why Garcia called him. Some of these files, I haven't even looked at." I told them. I just new the bare minimum. Sometimes, knowing is more dangerous.
"Alright, let's dig in." Luke said.
"This may be our only chance at stopping him and saving Delia. We just...please. We need to find her." I let out.
—
DELIA'S POV
He wasn't kidding when he said my body would be on fire. I don't think I've ever been in this much pain in my life.
Deep breaths, Delia. Deep breaths. Find out what the hell he wants.
"Look, okay, look. Whatever it is, we can discuss it. You don't have to do this." I told him. I was grunting with every word. I could hardly breathe. "Just give me the morphine, okay. And-and-just you can ask whatever you want." I paused. He just watched me struggle. "It was our investigation into you? Is that it? Is that what you want to know?" I struggled out.
God, this is never ending.
"Tangentially." He replied. Jesus Christ, then what does he want?
"Oh, god, then what?" I strained. I could feel the sweat dripping from my head. I was burning. This pain was going to kill me before he even has the chance. "Tell me. Tell me. Then, I'll tell you. It's that simple. Tell me and I'll tell you." I begged.
I just want this to end.
"There is a certain dearly departed team member of yours that I would like to discuss with you." He told me.
"Stephen?" I asked.
"No, not Stephen. This one isn't dead. At least not yet." He spoke.
Hotch.
God, this can't be happening.
"This agent and I had a little tete-a-tete. And I crossed a line I shouldn't have. I really couldn't help myself. And I started to stalk his son. And you know what he did. That coward? He went into Witness Protection...and he has been very difficult to find ever since. So that's what I want to know. I want you to tell me where he is because I know you know." He said.
That's the thing. I don't. I have no clue.
Rosie.
Oh my god, Rosie is with him.
"No." I shook my head. "Oh, stop, no." I begged. I can't do this. I can't send him after them.
"Yes, Delia. Where is Aaron Hotchner?" He demanded.
Don't cry. Please don't cry.
I don't even know where they are. I can't know. That's the whole point of Witness Protection.
"I don't know where Hotch is. I don't. That's how WITSEC works. He has to be hidden from us because of men like you." I winced.
He then held up my phone.
"Do you remember this? Well- it was a text exchange you had with a series of burner phones, and a last text exchange between you and this mystery man reads, 'Hondoras connection is a go. Hunting down all leads to B-Cap in DC. Thanks. A.H.'" He said and set the phone down.
Oh my god, those texts were fake. They were planted to lure him out. I didn't think he'd do this.
I let out a huff.
He set the phone down and picked up a hammer.
Oh, god.
He then moved the blanket off of me. "Let's get down to the question at hand. Where is Hotch?"
"Wait wait wait wait wait. He never gave me an address. All we did was text." I said quickly.
"No. Last chance." He told me.
Think, Delia, think.
"Vermont! He's somewhere in Vermont." I yelled. It was a lie.
He dropped the hammer on my legs and I screamed. Jesus Christ that hurt.
I'm never going to make it out of here.
—
EMILY'S POV
My head was in my lap in my office. All of the sudden, Spencer busted in my office.
"Did you and Delia text Hotch?" He asked us.
Oh my god. The fake texts. That's why he did this.
"No, we didn't." I replied.
"Didn't think so." He said and stormed out of the room. I followed him into the conference room. Him, Matt and Garcia were in there already.
"Stephen faked the Hotch side of the conversation to entice Scratch to make a move, right?" Matt asked as I walked in.
"Yeah." I breathed.
I can't believe that's what lured him out.
"The size and scale of which indicate desperation, a desperation he hasn't shown after a year of hiding, so why now?" Spencer asked. I wish I had the answer to that.
"A.H. is a pretty big red flag. Maybe that's what brought him out." Matt suggested.
"We used Hotch's initials before." I replied. I can barely think right now.
"What else did Stephen find? Something that would rattle him?" Spencer asked me.
"I-I don't know. Stephen didn't tell us everything. He thought if we knew everything it'd compromise our safety." I told him frantically. Look where that got us.
Spencer looked back at the board. "B-Cap? What's B-Cap?"
I thought for a moment. It sounded familiar. What the hell is it?
Then it hit me.
"Oh! Hallucinogen! Stephen thought it would peak his interest!" I exclaimed.
I saw Spencer's face turn up. He knew. "B-Cap is short for banisteriopsis caapi. It's a plant, specifically a hallucinogen found in a tea ayahuasca." He explained. I don't know how he knows the things he does but I'm so thankful he does.
"We worked a couple of those cases, I think. If I remember it's like peyote." Matt said.
"Yeah, in multiple ways they're similar legally in that taking them is considered a religious practice. Pharmaceutically, they're similar in that both drugs cause you to hallucinate intense geometric patterns and vomit a lot." Spencer explained.
"Okay, what does that have to do with Scratch?" Penelope asked.
"Well, Scratch has a cocktail of dissociative drugs to induce delusion but a mathematical mind like his would always be looking for ways to tweak and improve the formula. So he went to Honduras to look for it and then brought it back to DC to experiment with it. Stephen, Delia and I came to the conclusion and tried to pretend we were hot on his trail." I replied quickly. Words were literally spilling out of my mouth. It was all coming back.
"We need to track down all practitioners of the ceremony in the district- shamans, gurus, overnight religions that just hung their first shingle. He could be using one of their volunteers as a partner, either witting or unwitting." Spencer rambled. He kept fidgeting with his hands. Poor guy hasn't had a chance to blink since he's been out of prison.
My mind went back to Delia. God, all I want is her back in my arms.
—
DELIA'S POV
I closed my eyes again and kept whispering to myself. I need to stay calm. I can't let him in my head. It's the only thing I have right now.
"Where's that place that you go to to ground yourself? I'd like to know." He asked me.
I opened my eyes to see he was leaning right in my face. That's all I have. I'm not telling him that. "So you can destroy it. See, I've read your case file. I've read about how your father was killed when you were 13 and earlier, you said something about crossing a line when it came to stalking a child. I realized Hotch's son Jack, he's 13 now, too." I spoke. It all made sense in his fucked up mind.
"I'm not a pedophile. I'm insulted by your inference." He spoke. That's not what I'm saying.
"No, your interest in Jack is clinical. You want to see what it will be like if he grows up without his father like you did. That's what I've been focusing on. After you kill Hotch, you'll never leave Jack alone. Am I right?" I muttered. When Emily and I dug this up, we knew what his motive was.
"You are." He replied.
"Then let me tell you something, Peter. I will die protecting that child." I sneered.
"Oh, but it's not just that child. You see, Delia, I know little Rosie is with them, too." He spoke back. I winced. I will never let him hurt either of them. I will die right here if it keeps them safe.
"All the more reason I will die protecting them. I know Jack and Rosie. I love them. I watched Jack grow up. I will not betray him or his father. And Rosie.." My voice broke. My sweet Rosie. "She's been through so much already. I promised her I'd never let men like you hurt her. It doesn't matter what you do to me. I will not break."
"Let me test that resolve." He spoke and held a knife to my eye. I didn't even blink.
Stay strong, Delia. Stay in your head.
He stopped himself. "You make an interesting point. I need a plan B." He said and dropped the knife
As soon as he was away, I let out a deep breath.
I saw the other nurse walk by. Oh, dear god. "Hey, you. Just for a second. Please, I just need a second." I let out as I panted.
He came in the room and went to the machine I was hooked up to. He didn't say anything. I need to get out of here.
"Please. Please help me." I begged. He didn't say anything. He just wrapped a pressure sleeve around my arm. The one that wasn't in a sling. "You don't even have to get me out of here. Just make a phone call. You can use my phone. Call 911, leave the phone, and run." I begged again.
He took my blood pressure and ignored me.
"I can't do that." He said quickly.
My head hit the pillow behind me.
"I won't tell them you were involved." I pleaded. I feel like I can't breathe.
"It's not that simple."
"You said we were both being taken care of. You mean trapped. He has your family, doesn't he?" I strained. He quickly looked behind up at a noise. "Okay, my team can rescue them. It's what we do."
"I have to go." He said. No, please no.
"No, please." I begged. I felt the tears threatening to spill. He just walked out of the room, leaving me struggle by myself.
The only thought in my head is I'm going to die in here.
Before I knew it, Scratch was in my view again.
"It's so hard to find good help these days. It seems like no matter what, I'm left to do all the dirty work." He said and grabbed a syringe.
Oh dear god, please.
"What is that?" I frantically asked. He injected it into a vial. "Is that the morphine?"
"It's amphetamine." He replied. He's going to kill me. "I figured out my plan b. I can't torture the answers out of you, so I'll simply stop your heart instead." He said and injected into my IV.
This is it. This is my ending.
As soon as it coursed through my veins, my vision went blurry. All I felt was pain and my body shaking on the bed.
"If you want to live, tell me what I want to know. Where's Hotch, Delia?" He said and held up the paddles. I'd rather die.
I couldn't even answer him. I wasn't even aware of what was going on. The pain was too much. I couldn't breathe. I could barely see.
And then suddenly, I couldn't feel anything at all.
~
I looked at my lifeless body on the hospital bed. I knew it was a matter of time until he was done with me.
I walked out of the room and into a cemetery with an empty grave. There was my headstone.
That's when I realized it. My "death" date was just question marks.
"I get it now. Of course. I get it."
This wasn't real. This was all his drugs having an affect on me. He dosed me at the crash. My legs, my arm, feeling like I was on fire. It's all the delusion he wants me to think.
I jumped into the empty grave and prepared myself.
~
My body jolted up and I let out a moan. The nurse from earlier was standing over me with the paddles. When he saw my body move, he smiled.
"That's it." He let out in relief. He then held an oxygen mask on my face.
Everything was foggy.
"Please, tell him what he wants. If you tell him what he wants, this can all be over. He'll release my family, and then I can help you, okay?" He spoke to me.
"Go get him." I strained out.
He set it down and walked out.
It's time to get the hell out of here.
—
EMILY'S POV
Tara was in the hospital waking up. We all crowded around her bed while Garcia, Matt and Spencer went to work the religion angle.
"Scratch took Delia." She spoke as she woke up.
"Yeah, we know." I replied with a sympathetic smile. There were tears in my eyes.
"We're looking for him." Luke added.
"He dosed her." Tara revealed. Oh my god.
"In the SUV while she was knocked out?" Rossi asked.
She nodded. "Yeah. He brought his gas with him and he told her 'Your legs are broken, your right arm is broken, you're in severe traction, and you're paralyzed. You feel unimaginable agony all over your body unless I give you high doses of painkiller.'"
I stood up and paced around the room. She has got to be going out of her mind. I can't stand to think of her in this pain.
"She's in a delusion where he'd have total control over her." JJ let out. She's strong. She can fight him.
"He thinks she knows where Hotch is so he's trying to trick her." I spoke, my voice breaking. Why didn't he just take me? She's been through enough.
"She's one of the smartest people we know. She can see through it." Luke assured me. I know she can. That's why I'm worried. She will not give up his location. Even if it meant dying.
"So Scratch would go ever farther." I replied back.
"Sometimes interrogators even stimulate death. Man, he could make it feel like the real thing." Luke spoke.
"Here's the thing. She will not give up that location. She doesn't even know it but she won't give him that satisfaction. With everything she's been through, she'll know it's not real." I told them. I know her better than I know myself. I know she can pull through this.
"He probably combined the delusion with the classic prisoner interrogation tactic. At first, he would take away any chance to escape. Then he would introduce somebody else and give her a sliver of hope." JJ spoke.
"That could be a second interrogator who is a nice guy." Luke suggested.
"That guy would be her blindspot. She'd trust him and then reveal something she shouldn't." Rossi added.
And then we got an address.
We're coming, baby.
—
DELIA'S POV
Okay, Delia. Scratch dosed you. This isn't real.
I kept repeating that like a mantra.
Okay, you can do this.
I slowly lifted my arms to see they were moving just kfine. My arm in the sling had all mobility. This son of bitch tried to trick me.
I sat up slowly and took the blanket off of my legs. That contraption was never there. I was still in my work pants.
I rubbed my hands around my legs to make sure it was real. God, the relief.
I looked around the room to see the machines, monitors, and tools disappear. None of this was real.
"Yeah, I get it." I muttered.
I saw his shadow lurking. I quickly grabbed the blanket and laid back on the bed, acting like an invalid. I know his game now.
The "nurse" came in. "He's on his way, okay?"
It was Scratch this entire time.
"Okay?" He asked again.
I nodded. Play the role, Delia. "Yeah. Yeah, okay."
Scratch walked back out and back in a just a few seconds.
He walked over to my bed. "If I would've known that puting you at death's door would get you to talk, I would have started with that. Now, are you ready to tell where Hotch and Jack are?" He said.
I groggily nodded.
You want to play games, Scatch? Game on, bitch.
"Good. Go ahead." He said.
"They're at..." I coughed.
He leaned closer to me. My mouth was right at his ear. "Tell me."
"8....5..."
Brace yourself, Delia. You can do this.
I took all the strength I had and bit his ear as hard as I could. Not the method of attack I'd like to use, but it was enough to knock him off guard.
He screamed. I pushed him back and he went flying. I rolled out of the bed and ran as fast as I could away from him.
He fired a gun right behind me. I dodged the bullet and kept going.
I was still wearing the stupid hospital gown and sling. I ditched those in a corner and took off.
I slowly found my way through the warehouse.
"Parks! Reid!" I heard Luke yell. Oh, thank god. Emily's here.
I had my eyes on Scratch. He snapped his head my way and I slid a metal door in his face.
Another gunshot went off.
I found stairs and ran down them as quick as I could. I rounded a corner and found Matt Simmons. Of course Emily called him in.
"I have never been happier to see you." I whispered to him.
He brought me in for a quick hug. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah." I choked out.
Spencer rounded the corner with his gun raised. I jumped out of my skin.
"Lower your weapon, damnit." I muttered.
"Where's Scratch?" He asked. God, I missed him.
"He's upstairs. Tag in here. Simmons and Alvez can box him in." I told him.
"No, I need to go find him." He replied. No, please don't leave me.
"No, no, no, Spence. Please. I need someone I know is real right now, alright?" I begged. Tears were in my eyes.
That's all it took. He nodded to Matt and took me in for a hug. I cried into his shoulder.
"You okay?" He asked me.
I just sobbed. I want to go home. I want Emily and I want to go home.
He started to walk me out of the building. After a couple minutes, I heard Spencer's earpiece.
"Scratch is down. I repeat- Scratch is down."
I let out the biggest sigh of relief.
We walked outside to see Scratch's lifeless body on the ground. It's finally over.
Rosie can come home.
"Delia!" I heard an all familiar voice from behind me.
Emily.
I turned around right away.
She took one look before running over to me. I held on to her for dear life.
"I'm so proud of you." She whispered in my ear. "It's over. It's finally over."
I just cried into her shoulder. The sobs wracked through me. I held it in this entire time. I couldn't anymore.
I released my arms around her neck. She placed her hands on my cheek and brought me in for a kiss.
"Let's bring our girl home." She spoke.
I nodded.
"I love you." I whispered.
"I love you so much more." She replied back before laying one more sweet kiss on my lips.
Let's get the hell out of here.
—
Stephen's funeral was devastating. We lost a life so suddenly. I really liked that man.
Seeing his wife and kids mourn that death....was horrible. I can't imagine the pain they're in.
We held the funeral the day after the night from hell. I somehow pulled myself together enough. There wasn't enough makeup in the world to cover the bruises on my face.
It was late last night and we wanted Rosie to get her rest. They said she's coming in sometime today.
We made our way back to the BAU to talk to the team. I owe them my life.
Emily and I stood in the conference room and waited for them. Emily had her arm wrapped around me. They all filed in shortly after.
"I wanted to thank you all for your help." I told them sincerely.
"It's good to be of help. Ever since the I.R.T. went down, I've been sitting on my hands waiting for reassignment." Matt said.
I think he'll be a great addition to the BAU.
"We should sit down tomorrow. We can talk about that." Emily smiled.
"I'd like that." He nodded.
Now to more pressing matters.
"So, we all need to discuss what Peter Lewis' death means for this team." I started. It means that I can breathe again.
"It means that Hotch can come back." Penelope said with hopeful eyes.
About that...
"We spoke to him." Rossi paused. "He was relieved to hear that he and Jack were out of danger. They're out of Witness Protection. Rosie's out of Witness Protection. But um.." Rossi trailed off.
"He's not coming back, is he?" JJ asked. No he's not. I can't say I blame him.
"He loves being a full-time dad. He never got to do that before." Emily spoke.
"And let's face it, in this job- there's always going to be another Scratch. And he's lost enough." I let out.
"We all have." Tara spoke.
"Yes. We have, which is why the director has ordered us to take some time off from handling cases. Not for long. Just enough to catch our balance. Please. Take this time to breathe. If you need anything, you know who to call." Emily finished.
They all nodded.
Emily and I took a deep breath before walking into our office. We were stopped dead in our tracks.
Rosie was standing there.
"Oh my god." I muttered before engulfing her in the biggest hug. She cried into my chest. Emily's arms wrapped around the both of us.
This was home. This is all I need in my life. With these two by my side, I know I can make it through anything.
i had to cut that horrendous wheels up scene i'm so sorry.