The Photographer - Chapters 17 - 18
Morgan stared at his friend silently, the erratic beeping of the heart monitor lulling him into a daze. This was his fault. He shouldn’t have wasted time arguing with Rossi. Those few minutes he had wasted could have made a difference between whether Hotch would make it or not. No matter what happened, he had failed. If he hadn’t wasted his time chasing after Newell, he would have found the bunker sooner. If he hadn’t been to weak and allowed Mr. Garrisson to break his arm, none of this would have happened.
His self loathing was interrupted by a steady beep, indicating Hotch had flat-lined. Everything seemed to be muted in the ambulance, save the persistent heart monitor, as the paramedics began to work frantically. Derek felt like he was hearing things from underwater, the paramedics order of ‘clear’ coming out muffled. The muscular agent felt like he was suffocating, subconsciously refusing to breathe until Aaron did. Just as he felt himself getting light headed he heard the intermittent beeping of the heart monitor start up again.
“He’s back! We can’t afford to lose him again. Turn on those lights! Let’s move!” The female paramedic continued barking out orders until they pulled into the parking lot, loading Hotch onto a stretcher, and sprinted him to the OR. Morgan was too dazed to fight with the paramedics who were preventing him from following Hotch. He just stood there in the doorway, fighting the thoughts of Hotch dying on the table moving to the front of his mind. Derek didn’t even realize he was moving until he found himself sitting in a secluded waiting room. That’s when he noticed how horrible he looked. He was only wearing a bloodied Kevlar vest over his upper body in place of his shirt. The sling supporting his left arm was painted the same crimson liquid. Both hands had dried blood on them, solidifying how inescapable the situation was.
His eyes shifted to the hallway as he heard a familiar click-clack of heels. “Hey, Garcia.” Morgan’s voice held no hope as his eyes rested on the tech goddess who approached him. “Hey, sugar. I brought you a clean shirt and the… uhm… last package you received from the UnSub. The doctor’s may be able to reattach his…” Penelope couldn’t say the word. She had nearly lost all sense of self control just driving to the hospital with the finger in a cooler next to her.
Derek let her remove the Kevlar vest and sling before putting the shirt on him. He didn’t need her to do it for him, but he knew taking care of others was how Garcia coped. Penelope laid her head against his chest as Morgan wrapped his good arm around her trembling shoulders. “Please, Derek, tell me he’s going to make it. Tell me its gunna be ok.” He kissed her forehead lovingly as he rubbed her shoulder in an attempt to calm her. “I wish I could, baby.” He rested his chin on her feathery hair, letting her steady breathing calm him.
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WEST BUNKER
Richmond, VA
“I’ve got something!” Reid crouched several feet away from the fallen chair they’d found Hotch tied to. The three other agents slowly walked over to Reid, their eyes falling on the black material in his hands. “A ski mask?” JJ’s gentle voice barely traveled through the room, the gruesome surroundings suppressing her desire to even move. Emily nodded, pointing to a wet spot on the mask. “It looks like blood and saliva. Maybe Hotch bit the mask and pulled it off. Perhaps he figured out our UnSub’s identity.” Rossi nodded in agreement. “Perhaps that’s what set him off. He wasn’t counting on Hotch finding out who he was, so he shot him instead of baking him alive.” Spencer looked back at the mask. “Well, we now have some DNA to check against our suspects. By the looks of the conditions of this room, the DNA is too deteriorated to run it through the system, but it will work in a comparison against a DNA sample.”
JJ looked through the doorway, her thoughts returning to Aaron. “The only person who can identify our UnSub is on an operating table fighting for his life, if Hotch was even in a state of mind to recognize him…” The team grew silent at JJ’s words. They were painfully true. Hotch was their only lead.
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RAPPAHANNOCK GENERAL HOSPITAL
Richmond, VA
“I’m here for Aaron Hotchner. Agent Morgan called me and told me he’d been rushed here.” Jessica looked at the receptionist frantically as she pointed to the waiting room the FBI agent and analyst were in. “C’mon, Jacky. We’re going to wait for daddy with Derek and Penelope.” She fought to keep her tear filled voice steady as she saw the two agents sitting in silence. Penelope immediately hopped up and pulled Jack into her arms. “Wow, Jack! You’ve gotten SO big!” The young boy beamed with pride. “C’mon bud, let’s get some ice cream!” She led the young boy from the waiting room. He didn’t need to hear what Morgan was about to tell Jessica.
“H… how is he?” Her voice quivered with every syllable she spoke, her eyes searching Derek’s for truth. “He’s still in surgery. Hotch lost a lot of blood and suffered two gunshot wounds to his abdomen. He has cuts and burns covering his body… and more that you really don’t want to know.” Morgan’s voice was calm as he held the now sobbing woman in an attempt to soothe her. “Hotch is the strongest FBI agent and man I know. If anyone can pull through this, he can.” Jessica nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes, not caring about smudging her make-up. “I know… he’s the strongest person I know. I’m worried about him psychologically. So soon after that bastard attacked him and killed Haley. I’m scared he won’t recover.” Derek nodded knowingly. Hotch would tell everyone he was fine and internalize everything. He would pass his psych evaluation with flying colors, but he’d never be ‘ok’, whatever that was.
They sat in silence for hours, Garcia only able to kill about thirty minutes before returning with Jack. The team joined them all after securing the scene, refusing to leave until they heard something about their supervisor.
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Monitors flashed, machines beeped, and tubes pumped fluids into the unconscious agent’s limp body. The surgeon flashed his scalpel against Hotch’s pale skin, removing the two bullets with a practiced skill. The knife lacerations had been stitched up already, as had the gash in his brow and temple. The protruding orbital bone was still a problem, though the wound had been cleaned. “Alright, let’s get these GSW’s sewn up and then we can get the facial surgeon in here to take care of the orbital bone and jaw.” He worked quickly, watching the agent’s weak vitals as they fluttered back and forth, precariously close to going back into defib.
Hours upon hours passed as the surgeon worked to repair the orbital bone. Luckily, he was able to set the pins and plates in both the orbital bone and jaw which would ensure a quicker recovery. Unfortunately, the amount of bandages covering Aaron’s body made the thought of recovery seem impossible. Hotch hadn’t even woken from his coma.
---
Rossi carefully woke Jessica as the surgeon approached the group. Garcia had taken Jack to the hotel with the US Marshals so he could sleep. There was no point in the boy staying up all night when he didn’t know what all was going on.
“Umm… Aaron Hotchner?” The five agents stood with Jessica, causing the doctor to stop in slight shock. He wasn’t expecting so many people to be here for one man. “Family of Aaron Hotchner?” Jessica spoke up with force before Morgan even had the chance to protest. “This is his family. What do you have to tell us?” Her stare was firm as a sense of warmth filled each member of the team. They really were a family.
The doctor nodded hesitantly before speaking. “We were able to stop the bleeding and repair the damage done to his orbital bone and even reattached his finger. With time and therapy he could regain full use of his finger. He had high levels of dilaudid in his system, but we can’t tell if he will develop any dependency to the drug. It all depends on the individual.” He stopped nervously, forcing Morgan to speak up impatiently. “Just tell us the bad news you’re holding back.” His sharp words only aided the effect his dark eyes were having on the doctor as he could do nothing other than cooperate. “Aaron has slipped into a coma, and with his extremely weakened physical state, it could be weeks till he wakes up. Honestly, it’s all up to him. He could wake up tomorrow. It depends on how much he’s fighting. There’s nothing more we can do but give him pain killers to make this easier.” He turned from the group of people to let them absorb what he had just told them. Things weren’t getting any easier any time soon.
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RICHMOND POLICE DEPARTMENT
Richmond, VA
“Why the hell wasn’t I told about this raid? He may be your man, but this is still my city!” Detective Warren Neal pointed a thick digit in Derek Morgan’s face. The acting Unit Chief didn’t flinch, too drained from the event in question. In reality, he didn’t have to answer the man. He outranked him and had jurisdiction, but playing the FBI card was something Hotch detested, so he wouldn’t do it either. “We know our UnSub is a member of this department. We couldn’t risk him finding out we were coming and kill Hotch before we could get there. Obviously, it didn’t matter since the bastard tried anyways, but we got there in time to save him.” Warren stared at Derek inquisitively. “Hotchner survived? How is that possible? The Photographer brutalized him.” He was impressed by their colleague’s strength, seeing instantly why Aaron was the Unit Chief.
Derek ran his hand across his tired face, nodding slightly. “Hotch is in a coma. We believe the UnSub shot him after Hotch managed to remove his ski mask and figured out who he was in a fit of rage. Right now, he’s the only one who can tell us who this bastard is. We just have to wait for him to wake up.” If he wakes up. Derek no longer had the energy to fight the voices of doubt and self-hatred that were echoing through his mind.
Neal sensed Derek’s fatigue and let the disagreement go. There was no need to burden the man further. “Why don’t you head back to the hotel and get some rest? CSU is still processing the scene and your team is with Agent Hotchner. I’ll call you if we find anything.” The elder detective gave Morgan’s good arm a reassuring clap before walking away. Derek knew Neal was right, but he just couldn’t allow himself to relax while Hotch was fighting for his life and his attacker was still free. No, he still had a list of eighty names to narrow down. No one was safe from suspicion. No one.
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RAPPAHANNOCK GENERAL HOSPITAL - INTENSIVE CARE UNIT
Richmond, VA
Aaron laid on the hospital bed motionlessly, the only sign of life coming from him the weak beeping of the heart monitor. His bruised and burned skin was a sickening contrast to the white hospital sheet, almost a metaphor for how the UnSub had ‘tainted’ Hotch. The doctors were in and out of his room, not wanting him to be left unattended for a very long period of time. The team wasn’t allowed in the room with the injured man, forced to observe him with Jessica on the opposite side of a glass window that looked into his room.
Various levels of fatigue were present in each person’s face, further indicated by the amounts of bad coffee they had consumed. No one dared to leave, afraid something would happen if they did. The doctor’s hadn’t told them anything since informing them Aaron was in a coma, something they couldn’t decide whether it was good or not.
Inside the room, Hotch seemed to peaceful, completely different from what no one could see was going on inside his restless mind.
He looked around the room at the blood soaked walls. “Where the hell am I?” Hotch’s vision was blurry, most likely from a blow to the head. He heard a small boy’s sharp cry of pain from behind him. A chill ran down his spine as he reached for his sidearm that was missing, as was his backup. That sob was so familiar. Unable to remain in suspense, Aaron slowly moved towards the noise, stopping at a heavy door. There was another cry of pain before he kicked the door open. He thought he was prepared for what was on the other side. He was wrong.
Aaron Hotchner fell to his knees in utter despair at the sight before him. “No…. NO! Jack! No….” The Photographer stood over a decapitated and dismembered Jack Hotchner, a sick Joker-esque grin etched on his face. “Glad you could make it, Aaron.” Hotch began convulsing, no longer able to breathe. The eyes in his son’s detached head fluttered open and looked at his father disgustedly. “You weak, Daddy. I hate you.” The eyes fell closed as everything spun away from Hotch, fading into darkness. He heard beeping in the distance along with a faint yell of ‘clear’. His team was too late. Jack was gone.
“CLEAR!” The doctor pressed the defibrillator against Hotch’s bare chest in an attempt to bring him back. “Damnit! C’mon Aaron, right!” He rubbed the paddles together again. “CLEAR!” Hotch’s back lifted off the bed as the jolt of electricity ran through him. The steady beeping of the heart monitor returned as Hotch returned to the land of the living. Once he was stable, the doctor’s left him, Reid the only one watching him now. Jessica had nearly fainted so Rossi had to carry her to the waiting room with Emily and JJ.
Just as Reid was about to join the team, he heard a sharp intake of breath accompanied by the steady increase of beeping from the heart monitor. Hotch was awake, but he was delirious. “Hotch! Hotch calm down!” He gently grabbed the man’s wrists, not needing to use much force to restrain him in his weakened state. “That fucking bastard… will pay…” His breathing was labored and his voice was weak as he locked his wild eyes on Reid’s. “Spencer… The Photographer… he killed my… son… He killed…” He couldn’t say his son’s name before he succumbed to a coughing fit. Reid was frozen with shock after hearing the terror in Hotch’s voice. It wasn’t right.
The young doctor shook his head, not daring to release Hotch from his hold. “No, Hotch, Jack and Jessica were in protective custody. They’re here, now, waiting for you to wake up.” He saw the confusion in his superior’s eyes as he tried to process the information. “But… how? I just saw Jack… he was… his head wasn’t even…” Pain caused Hotch’s face to contort as he tried to sit up, the gunshot wounds preventing him from doing so. Spencer shook his head as he motioned to one of the nurses. He knew Hotch needed a sedative. In his current state, he was a danger to himself. “Hotch, it was just a trauma induced dream. Jack is fine, I promise.” He let go of his superior as the nurse administered a drug into Hotch’s IV that sent him into a dreamless slumber. He had to rest to get better.
“Hotch woke up from his coma, but they gave him a sedative. He woke up in a frantic state, yelling about seeing the Photographer kill Jack. It was a nightmare and I assured him that Jack was safe, but the doctors want him resting.” Spencer placed his slender hands in his pockets nervously as Jessica gasped in relief. JJ met his eyes inquisitively. “Did he tell you who the UnSub is?” Reid shook his head. “No, he was too panicked. I don’t think he even knew where he was. He was just concerned about Jack.” She nodded in understanding before turning to Jessica. “Come on, I’ll take you back to the hotel. Hotch is going to be ok and you staying up all night won’t help him.” JJ knew Jessica didn’t need to hear the case details the three other agents were going to go over.
Rossi waited until the two women were out of ear shot before speaking. “How bad was it?” Spencer shrugged his shoulders in uncertainty. “He has a severe concussion which certainly isn’t helping him any. I think he’ll be more lucid and aware when he wakes again.” Emily’s gaze had drifted over to where Hotch was resting, a thousand thoughts running through her mind at once. “So do we wait for him to tell us who this bastard is? Or do we go back to the list?” It was a good question. For now, they were going to remain at the hospital, per Morgan’s orders. Hopefully he would come back with a better idea of who the UnSub was.
The three ventured back over to the chairs and pulled out the files they had brought. There was no reason why they couldn’t work on eliminating suspects while they waited for Hotch to wake up. “Ok, Emily and Reid, you get twenty-three each. I’ll take twenty-four. Look for something that just seemed to conveniently alibi them that could be explained. Unless there is one hundred percent solid evidence to support said alibi, they stay on the list.” Emily and Spencer nodded in compliance with Rossi’s orders. It was going to take effort to find this UnSub, but they would do it. They had to.
His self loathing was interrupted by a steady beep, indicating Hotch had flat-lined. Everything seemed to be muted in the ambulance, save the persistent heart monitor, as the paramedics began to work frantically. Derek felt like he was hearing things from underwater, the paramedics order of ‘clear’ coming out muffled. The muscular agent felt like he was suffocating, subconsciously refusing to breathe until Aaron did. Just as he felt himself getting light headed he heard the intermittent beeping of the heart monitor start up again.
“He’s back! We can’t afford to lose him again. Turn on those lights! Let’s move!” The female paramedic continued barking out orders until they pulled into the parking lot, loading Hotch onto a stretcher, and sprinted him to the OR. Morgan was too dazed to fight with the paramedics who were preventing him from following Hotch. He just stood there in the doorway, fighting the thoughts of Hotch dying on the table moving to the front of his mind. Derek didn’t even realize he was moving until he found himself sitting in a secluded waiting room. That’s when he noticed how horrible he looked. He was only wearing a bloodied Kevlar vest over his upper body in place of his shirt. The sling supporting his left arm was painted the same crimson liquid. Both hands had dried blood on them, solidifying how inescapable the situation was.
His eyes shifted to the hallway as he heard a familiar click-clack of heels. “Hey, Garcia.” Morgan’s voice held no hope as his eyes rested on the tech goddess who approached him. “Hey, sugar. I brought you a clean shirt and the… uhm… last package you received from the UnSub. The doctor’s may be able to reattach his…” Penelope couldn’t say the word. She had nearly lost all sense of self control just driving to the hospital with the finger in a cooler next to her.
Derek let her remove the Kevlar vest and sling before putting the shirt on him. He didn’t need her to do it for him, but he knew taking care of others was how Garcia coped. Penelope laid her head against his chest as Morgan wrapped his good arm around her trembling shoulders. “Please, Derek, tell me he’s going to make it. Tell me its gunna be ok.” He kissed her forehead lovingly as he rubbed her shoulder in an attempt to calm her. “I wish I could, baby.” He rested his chin on her feathery hair, letting her steady breathing calm him.
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WEST BUNKER
Richmond, VA
“I’ve got something!” Reid crouched several feet away from the fallen chair they’d found Hotch tied to. The three other agents slowly walked over to Reid, their eyes falling on the black material in his hands. “A ski mask?” JJ’s gentle voice barely traveled through the room, the gruesome surroundings suppressing her desire to even move. Emily nodded, pointing to a wet spot on the mask. “It looks like blood and saliva. Maybe Hotch bit the mask and pulled it off. Perhaps he figured out our UnSub’s identity.” Rossi nodded in agreement. “Perhaps that’s what set him off. He wasn’t counting on Hotch finding out who he was, so he shot him instead of baking him alive.” Spencer looked back at the mask. “Well, we now have some DNA to check against our suspects. By the looks of the conditions of this room, the DNA is too deteriorated to run it through the system, but it will work in a comparison against a DNA sample.”
JJ looked through the doorway, her thoughts returning to Aaron. “The only person who can identify our UnSub is on an operating table fighting for his life, if Hotch was even in a state of mind to recognize him…” The team grew silent at JJ’s words. They were painfully true. Hotch was their only lead.
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RAPPAHANNOCK GENERAL HOSPITAL
Richmond, VA
“I’m here for Aaron Hotchner. Agent Morgan called me and told me he’d been rushed here.” Jessica looked at the receptionist frantically as she pointed to the waiting room the FBI agent and analyst were in. “C’mon, Jacky. We’re going to wait for daddy with Derek and Penelope.” She fought to keep her tear filled voice steady as she saw the two agents sitting in silence. Penelope immediately hopped up and pulled Jack into her arms. “Wow, Jack! You’ve gotten SO big!” The young boy beamed with pride. “C’mon bud, let’s get some ice cream!” She led the young boy from the waiting room. He didn’t need to hear what Morgan was about to tell Jessica.
“H… how is he?” Her voice quivered with every syllable she spoke, her eyes searching Derek’s for truth. “He’s still in surgery. Hotch lost a lot of blood and suffered two gunshot wounds to his abdomen. He has cuts and burns covering his body… and more that you really don’t want to know.” Morgan’s voice was calm as he held the now sobbing woman in an attempt to soothe her. “Hotch is the strongest FBI agent and man I know. If anyone can pull through this, he can.” Jessica nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes, not caring about smudging her make-up. “I know… he’s the strongest person I know. I’m worried about him psychologically. So soon after that bastard attacked him and killed Haley. I’m scared he won’t recover.” Derek nodded knowingly. Hotch would tell everyone he was fine and internalize everything. He would pass his psych evaluation with flying colors, but he’d never be ‘ok’, whatever that was.
They sat in silence for hours, Garcia only able to kill about thirty minutes before returning with Jack. The team joined them all after securing the scene, refusing to leave until they heard something about their supervisor.
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Monitors flashed, machines beeped, and tubes pumped fluids into the unconscious agent’s limp body. The surgeon flashed his scalpel against Hotch’s pale skin, removing the two bullets with a practiced skill. The knife lacerations had been stitched up already, as had the gash in his brow and temple. The protruding orbital bone was still a problem, though the wound had been cleaned. “Alright, let’s get these GSW’s sewn up and then we can get the facial surgeon in here to take care of the orbital bone and jaw.” He worked quickly, watching the agent’s weak vitals as they fluttered back and forth, precariously close to going back into defib.
Hours upon hours passed as the surgeon worked to repair the orbital bone. Luckily, he was able to set the pins and plates in both the orbital bone and jaw which would ensure a quicker recovery. Unfortunately, the amount of bandages covering Aaron’s body made the thought of recovery seem impossible. Hotch hadn’t even woken from his coma.
---
Rossi carefully woke Jessica as the surgeon approached the group. Garcia had taken Jack to the hotel with the US Marshals so he could sleep. There was no point in the boy staying up all night when he didn’t know what all was going on.
“Umm… Aaron Hotchner?” The five agents stood with Jessica, causing the doctor to stop in slight shock. He wasn’t expecting so many people to be here for one man. “Family of Aaron Hotchner?” Jessica spoke up with force before Morgan even had the chance to protest. “This is his family. What do you have to tell us?” Her stare was firm as a sense of warmth filled each member of the team. They really were a family.
The doctor nodded hesitantly before speaking. “We were able to stop the bleeding and repair the damage done to his orbital bone and even reattached his finger. With time and therapy he could regain full use of his finger. He had high levels of dilaudid in his system, but we can’t tell if he will develop any dependency to the drug. It all depends on the individual.” He stopped nervously, forcing Morgan to speak up impatiently. “Just tell us the bad news you’re holding back.” His sharp words only aided the effect his dark eyes were having on the doctor as he could do nothing other than cooperate. “Aaron has slipped into a coma, and with his extremely weakened physical state, it could be weeks till he wakes up. Honestly, it’s all up to him. He could wake up tomorrow. It depends on how much he’s fighting. There’s nothing more we can do but give him pain killers to make this easier.” He turned from the group of people to let them absorb what he had just told them. Things weren’t getting any easier any time soon.
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RICHMOND POLICE DEPARTMENT
Richmond, VA
“Why the hell wasn’t I told about this raid? He may be your man, but this is still my city!” Detective Warren Neal pointed a thick digit in Derek Morgan’s face. The acting Unit Chief didn’t flinch, too drained from the event in question. In reality, he didn’t have to answer the man. He outranked him and had jurisdiction, but playing the FBI card was something Hotch detested, so he wouldn’t do it either. “We know our UnSub is a member of this department. We couldn’t risk him finding out we were coming and kill Hotch before we could get there. Obviously, it didn’t matter since the bastard tried anyways, but we got there in time to save him.” Warren stared at Derek inquisitively. “Hotchner survived? How is that possible? The Photographer brutalized him.” He was impressed by their colleague’s strength, seeing instantly why Aaron was the Unit Chief.
Derek ran his hand across his tired face, nodding slightly. “Hotch is in a coma. We believe the UnSub shot him after Hotch managed to remove his ski mask and figured out who he was in a fit of rage. Right now, he’s the only one who can tell us who this bastard is. We just have to wait for him to wake up.” If he wakes up. Derek no longer had the energy to fight the voices of doubt and self-hatred that were echoing through his mind.
Neal sensed Derek’s fatigue and let the disagreement go. There was no need to burden the man further. “Why don’t you head back to the hotel and get some rest? CSU is still processing the scene and your team is with Agent Hotchner. I’ll call you if we find anything.” The elder detective gave Morgan’s good arm a reassuring clap before walking away. Derek knew Neal was right, but he just couldn’t allow himself to relax while Hotch was fighting for his life and his attacker was still free. No, he still had a list of eighty names to narrow down. No one was safe from suspicion. No one.
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RAPPAHANNOCK GENERAL HOSPITAL - INTENSIVE CARE UNIT
Richmond, VA
Aaron laid on the hospital bed motionlessly, the only sign of life coming from him the weak beeping of the heart monitor. His bruised and burned skin was a sickening contrast to the white hospital sheet, almost a metaphor for how the UnSub had ‘tainted’ Hotch. The doctors were in and out of his room, not wanting him to be left unattended for a very long period of time. The team wasn’t allowed in the room with the injured man, forced to observe him with Jessica on the opposite side of a glass window that looked into his room.
Various levels of fatigue were present in each person’s face, further indicated by the amounts of bad coffee they had consumed. No one dared to leave, afraid something would happen if they did. The doctor’s hadn’t told them anything since informing them Aaron was in a coma, something they couldn’t decide whether it was good or not.
Inside the room, Hotch seemed to peaceful, completely different from what no one could see was going on inside his restless mind.
He looked around the room at the blood soaked walls. “Where the hell am I?” Hotch’s vision was blurry, most likely from a blow to the head. He heard a small boy’s sharp cry of pain from behind him. A chill ran down his spine as he reached for his sidearm that was missing, as was his backup. That sob was so familiar. Unable to remain in suspense, Aaron slowly moved towards the noise, stopping at a heavy door. There was another cry of pain before he kicked the door open. He thought he was prepared for what was on the other side. He was wrong.
Aaron Hotchner fell to his knees in utter despair at the sight before him. “No…. NO! Jack! No….” The Photographer stood over a decapitated and dismembered Jack Hotchner, a sick Joker-esque grin etched on his face. “Glad you could make it, Aaron.” Hotch began convulsing, no longer able to breathe. The eyes in his son’s detached head fluttered open and looked at his father disgustedly. “You weak, Daddy. I hate you.” The eyes fell closed as everything spun away from Hotch, fading into darkness. He heard beeping in the distance along with a faint yell of ‘clear’. His team was too late. Jack was gone.
“CLEAR!” The doctor pressed the defibrillator against Hotch’s bare chest in an attempt to bring him back. “Damnit! C’mon Aaron, right!” He rubbed the paddles together again. “CLEAR!” Hotch’s back lifted off the bed as the jolt of electricity ran through him. The steady beeping of the heart monitor returned as Hotch returned to the land of the living. Once he was stable, the doctor’s left him, Reid the only one watching him now. Jessica had nearly fainted so Rossi had to carry her to the waiting room with Emily and JJ.
Just as Reid was about to join the team, he heard a sharp intake of breath accompanied by the steady increase of beeping from the heart monitor. Hotch was awake, but he was delirious. “Hotch! Hotch calm down!” He gently grabbed the man’s wrists, not needing to use much force to restrain him in his weakened state. “That fucking bastard… will pay…” His breathing was labored and his voice was weak as he locked his wild eyes on Reid’s. “Spencer… The Photographer… he killed my… son… He killed…” He couldn’t say his son’s name before he succumbed to a coughing fit. Reid was frozen with shock after hearing the terror in Hotch’s voice. It wasn’t right.
The young doctor shook his head, not daring to release Hotch from his hold. “No, Hotch, Jack and Jessica were in protective custody. They’re here, now, waiting for you to wake up.” He saw the confusion in his superior’s eyes as he tried to process the information. “But… how? I just saw Jack… he was… his head wasn’t even…” Pain caused Hotch’s face to contort as he tried to sit up, the gunshot wounds preventing him from doing so. Spencer shook his head as he motioned to one of the nurses. He knew Hotch needed a sedative. In his current state, he was a danger to himself. “Hotch, it was just a trauma induced dream. Jack is fine, I promise.” He let go of his superior as the nurse administered a drug into Hotch’s IV that sent him into a dreamless slumber. He had to rest to get better.
“Hotch woke up from his coma, but they gave him a sedative. He woke up in a frantic state, yelling about seeing the Photographer kill Jack. It was a nightmare and I assured him that Jack was safe, but the doctors want him resting.” Spencer placed his slender hands in his pockets nervously as Jessica gasped in relief. JJ met his eyes inquisitively. “Did he tell you who the UnSub is?” Reid shook his head. “No, he was too panicked. I don’t think he even knew where he was. He was just concerned about Jack.” She nodded in understanding before turning to Jessica. “Come on, I’ll take you back to the hotel. Hotch is going to be ok and you staying up all night won’t help him.” JJ knew Jessica didn’t need to hear the case details the three other agents were going to go over.
Rossi waited until the two women were out of ear shot before speaking. “How bad was it?” Spencer shrugged his shoulders in uncertainty. “He has a severe concussion which certainly isn’t helping him any. I think he’ll be more lucid and aware when he wakes again.” Emily’s gaze had drifted over to where Hotch was resting, a thousand thoughts running through her mind at once. “So do we wait for him to tell us who this bastard is? Or do we go back to the list?” It was a good question. For now, they were going to remain at the hospital, per Morgan’s orders. Hopefully he would come back with a better idea of who the UnSub was.
The three ventured back over to the chairs and pulled out the files they had brought. There was no reason why they couldn’t work on eliminating suspects while they waited for Hotch to wake up. “Ok, Emily and Reid, you get twenty-three each. I’ll take twenty-four. Look for something that just seemed to conveniently alibi them that could be explained. Unless there is one hundred percent solid evidence to support said alibi, they stay on the list.” Emily and Spencer nodded in compliance with Rossi’s orders. It was going to take effort to find this UnSub, but they would do it. They had to.