Title: Crave
By: realityaskew
Pairing: Hotch/Prentiss
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing except for the serial killer that I created for this story.
Summary: A Serial Killer sets his sights on Prentiss.

***

Chapter One: At First Sight.

Her smell, her laugh, her beauty, her entire being was completely intoxicating. From the moment she walked into the bar he knew without a doubt that she would be his next. Sipping at his third martini he literally had to resist the urge to grab her right then and there. He couldn't be sloppy, not like the last time. The FBI was already on his tail and he was certain that if there was one more slip up he would be caught.

She was standing by the bar holding onto a cold beer and chatting with a petite, cute blonde but he wasn't interested in the blonde. For as long as he could remember he had always only been attracted to brunettes. The little blonde's cell phone went off and she excused herself momentarily. Normally he would watch them for a few days, get their daily routine memorized and wait for the perfect moment to snatch them but it had been a little over two weeks since his last kill and he was itching with impatience. Maybe he could follow her home after she left the bar and if there weren't too many witnesses around he could just make a grab for her then. No, it was too risky.

The blonde came back over and the beautiful brunette's heart sunk when she saw the expression on her face. She threw down a few dollars for the beer and the two of them made their way through the crowd to the exit. Quickly downing the rest of his martini he jumped out of his seat and moved fast so he could head them off at the door. He felt his entire body tingle with excitement and anticipation when their bodies collided. Her thick, dark brown hair smelt of vanilla and lilacs and he had to physically restrain himself from running his fingers through it.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." He apologized, flashing a pearly white grin.

"Don't worry about it." She smiled back and then headed out into the parking lot.

Once she was completely out of sight he looked down at what he had snatched out of her bag. He thought that it was her wallet but when he flipped it open his eyes widened when he saw the FBI badge. Agent Emily Prentiss; it looked like this was going to be even more fun than he had previously imagined.

***

Chapter Two: Secret Admirer

Aaron Hotchner handed out the current case files to Reid and Morgan as they entered the conference room and took a seat. J.J. grabbed one from him as she hurried through the door and Hotch hesitated a moment before he handed the last one over to Prentiss. She quickly averted her eyes away from him and purposely sat down at the end of the table next to Reid because it was the furthest possible way she could distance herself from him when they were in the same room. Ever since their little "incident" the week before things had become strained and awkward between the two agents.

They had all arrived back at Quantico late after a particularly heinous case in Little Rock, Colorado; but any case involving young children was always harder. Everyone on the team was drained and still slightly shaken up so they decided to head out a little early and grab a drink before heading home for the night. Prentiss and Hotch had stayed late to finish up some paper work. Prentiss knew that Hotch was especially disturbed by the case that they had just wrapped up because he had a little boy who meant the entire World to him. After finishing up her work she gently knocked on his office door and found him with his head hung low and a defeated look on his face.

"Are you going to be okay?" She asked him tentatively.

He simply let out a loud sigh and looked up at her shaking his head with false certainty.

"Look sir, I know these particular cases are really hard for you because of your son but we caught him. He's behind bars and will most likely receive the death penalty.

"It doesn't matter that we caught him because there will always be another one just like him out there. Do you know how many children go missing every single year?" He let his head drop down again, crushed. "I just miss him so much and now Haley is talking about moving to New York and I don't know how I'm going to see him. God, I'm the crappiest father out there."

Prentiss couldn't help but feel bad for her boss and she was also slightly surprised because she had never really seen him act this way, so broken. He was always calm, cool, collected, and in charge. He had just gotten over a messy divorce with his wife and his son meant everything to him and now there was a chance he could be taken away. Aaron Hotchner wasn't made out of stone and he had to break eventually. Emily just never thought she would be the one to witness it all.

"Sir, you are a great Dad and a great boss who is incredible at his job. You love your son and you would do anything for him. Trust me, we both know what kind of monsters out their have children and you are a good guy. I know that you'll get through this. The whole team is here for you whenever you need us; I'm here for you too.

Hotch looked up and gave her a crooked smile. "Thank you." He whispered quietly.

Prentiss gave him a sad smile in return and walked over to his desk to hand him her paper work. Just as she was about to turn around to leave she felt his hand cover hers. "Sir?" She asked, a confused expression spreading over her face.

"Emily, thank you; really."

Prentiss quirked an eyebrow somewhat surprised. Hotch rarely called her by her first name. In fact she was pretty sure that she could count on one hand how many times he had called her Emily.

Hotch locked gazes with her and suddenly the air in the room had changed. He slowly stood up from his chair, never letting go of her hand and a bit unsure he inched his face closer to hers until they were only centimeters apart. He had absolutely no idea why he was doing this. It was just that for the first time in a long time he felt like someone finally understood him and actually gave a damn about him. Hotch, never taking his eyes off of hers, reached up with his left hand and gently cupped the side of her face in his palm. He sweetly caressed her cheek with him thumb and let out a breathy laugh before closing the tiny distance between their mouths.

Emily couldn't believe what was going on. Her boss was kissing her and for some reason she couldn't comprehend at the moment she was kissing him back. The kiss may have started off slow and hesitant but it quickly grew deeper and more fervent. When Emily's brain finally registered the fact that she needed oxygen she mentally slapped herself and roughly pulled away from him, panting for air and her lips somewhat swollen.

Hotch finally realized what he had just done and his eyes grew wide with shock. "Oh my God, Emily I'm so sorry. That was completely unprofessional. I guess that I just…."

"Don't worry about it." She cut him off right away. "I know you've been going through a rough time and it was a mistake and means absolutely nothing." She turned away from him and rushed out of his office as fast as possible.

As soon as the door was shut behind her she paused for a moment and touched her fingers to her lips before leaving. She asked herself why she had kissed him back. Inside his office Hotch stood frozen in his spot still completely shocked at what he had just done. Sure he had been going through a rough patch and he did get caught up in the moment but part of him knew that he had wanted to kiss Emily Prentiss for quite some time. He carefully pressed his fingers against his now puffy lips and fell back down into his chair as a million thoughts began racing through his mind.

"What do we got Hotch?" Morgan asked, briefly flipping through the case file.

Hotch cast one quick glance in Emily's direction before booting up the lap top and grabbing the remote, pointing it at the white screen behind him. Four crime scene photos popped up onto the screen with perfectly taken portraits of each victim during a much more innocent time hung above them.

"Jenny Masterson, Claire Owens, Stacey Michaels, and Britney Stevens all in their mid 20's to early 30's. They all had well paying jobs and lived around this area. Their bodies were all dumped in the woods beside the highway and were all discovered within 48 hours after their murders; all except Jenny Masterson who wasn't found until two months after her murder. The coroner reported that they all died of strangulation and had high trace amounts of morphine in their systems."

"Okay so we know that the unsub definitely has a thing for tall attractive brunettes. And look at all three of them except for Jenny Masterson. It looks like he put make up on them and combed out their hair and dressed them in nice cocktail dresses that show off their legs, almost like he was grooming them and taking care of them. He injected them with morphine and strangled them to death too which suggests that these murders weren't done out of rage but possible lust." Morgan said.

"You know Ted Bundy used to wash his victims' hair, bathe them, and put make up on them after he killed them. Sometimes he would even paint their nails. The fact that the unsub is also doing something similar to this tells us that he is obviously attracted to these women and wants them to look beautiful when they are eventually found. I'm betting he also keeps them alive for a while until he eventually murders them." Reid chimed in, closely examining each crime scene photo.

"Well I think it's pretty obvious that the unsub isn't exactly great at relationships." J.J. said, flipping through a few pages in the folder that she was holding. "Also he took really good care of the bodies after he killed them and made sure that he left their bodies in a presentable way instead of just dumping them out like they were pieces of trash which says that he probably had a strong affection for these women."

"What do you think Prentiss?" Hotch asked her.

She briefly glanced up at him and sucked in a deep breath before speaking. "I'm guessing that the unsub is most likely in his mid to late 30's. He's probably handsome, sweet, and charming which is why these women would probably feel safe and unthreatened by him. He could be inserting himself into their lives somehow or maybe stalking them for a while before making his move. We won't really know more until we speak with the victims' families."

"Okay, Reid and J.J I want you two to go talk with Britney Steven's, the latest victim's family, and find out everything that you can about her from them. Morgan I want you to get Garcia on the phone and have her get all the information he can on these four women. Prentiss you and I will head over to the latest crime scene and see what we can find out."

Emily visibly flinched and shifted in her seat uncomfortably at the idea of partnering up with Hotch. She didn't want to make things anymore awkward than they already where.

"I'll meet you out in the parking lot in five minutes; we'll take my car." Hotch called over his shoulder as he left the conference room.

J.J. and Reid gathered up their things and left and Morgan got more comfortable in his seat as he flipped open his cell phone and hit speed dial instantly connecting him to Garcia.

"Baby Girl I need you now more than ever."

"I bet you say that to all the girls." Garcia answered with a cheeky smile as she sat in front of all of her computer screens.

"No, no just you sweetness. Listen I need you to get me all the information you can get on Jenny Masterson, Claire Owens, Stacy Michaels, and Britney Stevens. I need to know where they worked, who they associated with, the types of places they frequented, if they were married, divorced, had any children, and anything else those magic fingers of yours can find.

"Trust me these magic fingers can do that and much more." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively and Morgan could practically see the sly smile through the phone.

"Don't tease me like that baby girl you know what it does to me."

Emily couldn't help but smile and shake her head at those two. She picked up her case file and left the conference room only to run straight into Hotch's chest

"Oh, sorry." She apologized, staring at her shoes instead of him.

Hotch took a quick look around before tugging on her elbow and leading them away from prying ears.

"Look Emily we have to talk about what happened between us last week."

"Sir, I know it was nothing but a mistake. We both had a moment of weakness and it will never happen again."

"Emily…."

Before Hotch could finish one of the secretaries interrupted them. "Excuse me, sorry to interrupt but you have a phone call Agent Prentiss."

"I'll meet you out by the car." She told him before pulling away and walking towards her desk.

Hotch ran a hand through his short black hair and let out a frustrated sigh. He needed to tell her that their kiss had been anything but a mistake.

When Prentiss got to her desk she picked up the telephone and hit the flashing button labeled line four.

"This is Special Agent Prentiss." She paused, waiting for a response but she got nothing. She knew that there was somebody on the other end but they weren't answering her. "Hello?" She asked and then the line went dead.

She simply shrugged it off and figured that whoever it was would probably just call back. She grabbed her things off her desk and went to take her badge out of her bag only to find that it wasn't in there. She rummaged around the bag for a few moments with no luck. Her badge wasn't on her desk and it hadn't fallen onto the floor so she had absolutely no idea where it was. Finally she gave up and looked at her watch. She had to meet Hotch out in the parking lot and ride in a car with him, alone. This was definitely going to be unpleasant but she decided that she would just focus on the case and not let him get off topic.

Clutching onto the pay phone he had just hung up. Jonas Lincoln smiled to himself and closed his eyes letting the sound of her voice linger in his head.

A/N: Sorry, I didn't mean to delete the story so I'm putting it back up. I meant to fix some spelling mistakes and screwed up. Now here's the second, slightly longer chapter that I promised. It's up a little later than I promised but I got it up none the less. Thanks for the reviews! I love them and they keep me motivated to keep writing more for all of you good people.

***

Chapter Three: Uninvited Guest

Emily had fortunately kept the ride to the crime scene "discussion" free. She had made sure to be on the phone with Morgan and Garcia the entire time getting as much information about Britney Stevens as she could even if it was completely useless to the investigation. When they finally arrived she jumped out of the car as fast as possible and her and Hotch met with a few officers who were still securing the scene and searching for any last minute clues. An officer greeted them and only Hotch flashed his badge.

"Where's your badge?" He asked her quietly so the officer wouldn't hear.

"I don't know I couldn't find it anywhere."

Hotch just squeezed his eyes shut frustrated and gestured to the officer lift up the police tape and let them down into the wooded area where the body had been found. Prentiss made sure to break away from Hotch stating that they would find more out if they looked around separately. He begrudgingly agreed and the two began taking in everything around them

J.J. and Reid sat in the cozy living room of Mr. and Mrs. Stevens and looked on as Mrs. Stevens choked back sobs as she clutched onto a photo of her little girl. Mr. Stevens sat on the couch besides her doing his best to comfort her although he was on the verge of tears also.

"Mr. and Mrs. Stevens I know how hard this is and trust me we are doing everything we can to catch the person responsible but anything that you could tell us about Britney would greatly help us." J.J said in a calm and soothing voice.

"She was such a sweet girl. Why would anybody want to hurt her? I just don't understand." Mrs. Stevens cried out.

"Can you tell us if your daughter maybe had someone new in her life? A new guy who was a boyfriend or a friend?" Reid asked gently.

"No, she just recently broke up with her boyfriend of two and a half years, James Wright. They were so in love but he was going overseas and they decided to break it off." Mr. Steven sniffled.

"Did you notice anything strange going on with Britney before she went missing?" J.J. asked.

"No nothing at all. She was pretty depressed about breaking up with James but she was doing so well at work and was even up for a promotion."

Mr. Stevens was quiet for a long moment before he remembered something. "Wait a minute a few weeks ago someone did break into her apartment. She wasn't home at the time and nothing of value was stolen."

"Where the police contacted?"

"Yes they were but they couldn't find anything and because nothing was stolen they said that whoever broke in probably got spooked off by something or someone and that's why they didn't have the chance to steal anything."

"Are you sure nothing was taken."

"Yes and if there was Britney never mentioned it."

"I just don't understand why someone would want to hurt my little baby." Mrs. Stevens began weeping uncontrollably.

"You should probably leave now." Mr. Steven said hugging his inconsolable wife close to him.

"Mr. and Mrs. Stevens we will catch who did this and if you can think of anything else that can help please don't hesitate to call us." J.J. said placing a card with her cell phone number down onto the coffee table in front of her.

Once J.J. and Reid were back outside Reid turned to J.J. "I'm thinking we should check out her apartment tomorrow. If this guy is stalking these women like I think he is he probably did take something from her apartment. It was probably something extremely unnoticeable though. I'm guessing it might have been something personal of Britney's that he could keep as a trophy."

"Yeah you're right. I call Garcia and ask her to look up all reported break-ins in the area in the past year of young white females."

Back at Quantico Morgan was going through some more crime scene photos when his cell phone went off.

"What do you have for me Baby Girl?"

"Check this out all of the four victims had their homes broken into. Nothing valuable was stolen and each break in happened at least three days before they went missing."

"Thanks you're the best."

"I know."

Prentiss and Hotch didn't find much at the crime scene and decided that it would be best to head home for the night and in the morning they would see what everyone else found out. Hotch offered Prentiss a ride home but she declined and instead got a ride home from on of the officers who was at the crime scene.

As soon as she got to her apartment she headed straight to the shower. Images of the crime scene photos kept flashing through her mind and there was something she couldn't quite place her finger on that disturbed her deeply. Once in the bathroom she turned on the faucet and let the water run until it was steaming hot. Stripping down she stepped under the scolding hot water and enjoyed the burn. Showers always relaxed her and at the moment she was beyond stressed out.

Jonas Lincoln picked at the lock of Emily's apartment door until he finally got it open. When he stepped in he could hear the water of the shower running and he closed his eyes and smiled to himself. He could just imagine how beautiful she was and he took in a deep breath smelling vanilla and lilacs again. Her apartment was clean and orderly and he took his time going through everything and taking everything in. The rest of those women were nothing compared to her. She would his greatest victory. Jonas quietly crept up the stairs and silently turned the door knob of her bedroom door. The bathroom door was slightly ajar and tip toed over peeking in just for a moment. In only a few days she would be his and just knowing that made him tingle with extreme excitement.

He walked over to her bed and flopped down onto it relishing the feeling of her comforter and the knowledge that she slept their every night. He reached into his pocket and removed her badge and a single red rose placing it on her night stand. Jonas scanned the contents of the room looking for something he could take with him just to tide him over for the next couple of days. He spotted Emily's hairbrush resting on the vanity and picked it up lifting it to his nose and deeply inhaling her sweet scent. With one last glance he held the brush close to his chest and left the bedroom.

Emily was completely wrapped up in her own thoughts when the sound of her front door slamming ripped her out of them. Her breath caught in her throat and she turned off the running water. She reached outside of the shower for a towel and tightly wrapped herself up in it. She left the bathroom room and walked down a few steps only to find nothing. Everything was where it should be and since the entire downstairs was open she didn't see anyone. She simply shook it off as being paranoid and made her way back to her bedroom. Closing the door behind her she went over to her vanity to get her brush and quirked a confused eyebrow when she didn't see it there. First her badge and now her hairbrush, she felt like she was losing her mind. Her eyes grew wide when she spotted her badge and a single red rose on her night stand. She walked over and eyed the rose and her badge suspiciously. Someone had most definitely been in her apartment.

***

Chapter Four: Parallels

Emily Prentiss sat at her desk trying not to nod off. She only slept a grand total of 30 minutes the night before and she was currently on her fifth cup of coffee. The rose she had found lying on top of her badge was wedged into the case file. Morgan came up to her desk and waved a hand in front of her face.

"Hey Prentiss are you feeling alright?"

She shook away the fog of sleep as best as she could and flashed him a fake reassuring smile. "Yeah I'm fine just a little tired that's all."

Morgan wasn't completely buying it but he decided to let it go. "If you say so oh and Hotch wants us all in the conference room, now."

Prentiss nodded her head and picked up the case file following Morgan. She slid past Hotch without a single glance and sat at the end of the table next to Reid like she had done the day before. Hotch reached over the table and dialed Garcia's number putting is on speaker phone.

"Good morning team." Garcia chirped happily over the line.

"What do you have for us beautiful?" Morgan asked.

"Okay two of these girls, Jenny Masterson and Britney Stevens worked at a local ad agency called Carmichael & Smith. They weren't in the same departments though."

"Still there could be a connection. Maybe our unsub works there too." Hotch said.

"Claire Owens was a veterinarian and Stacey Michaels was a real estate agent." Garcia Continued.

"Okay so it's obvious that our unsub is attracted to successful women. He could have met or seen them anywhere so we are going to have to start narrowing things down a little better." J.J. chimed in.

"Also I ran a long background check on all four of these girls had their homes and apartments broken into three days before they went missing. The police reports showed that nothing valuable was stolen. Jenny Masterson did complain that a few of her things had been rifled through but everything seemed to be fine otherwise. At each break-in the police did find a single red rose though which means that our psycho of the moment was leaving them a little gift. The police just wrote it off as nothing."

At hearing this new information Emily's head suddenly snapped up. "Oh, my, God."

"What is it?" Hotch asked.

Prentiss grabbed her case file and flipped it open letting a single red rose fall out onto the table.

"Where did you get that?" Reid asked leaning forward to better examine the wilted flower.

"Last night I think someone was in my apartment. My badge went missing and I found it on my night stand and the rose was lying on top of it." Prentiss said as she stood up and began pacing back and forth. This morning before I left it looked like some of my stuff had been gone through too and my hairbrush was missing."

Everyone stared at Prentiss in complete shock and over the phone Garcia said, "Holly SHIT."

"This makes sense actually. Your smart successful and a beautiful brunette which is just our unsub's type." Hotch said.

The team all shot him a confused look. "Look I want all of you out there finding whatever else you can. Go over every last detail."

Everyone agreed and left the conference room leaving Hotch and Prentiss alone. Prentiss stopped pacing back and forth and finally looked Hotch directly in the eye. It was the first time that she had done that in over a week.

"Emily I know we are at work and there is probably a much better time and place to talk about our current situation but you aren't just an agent working on the case anymore; you are the case."

Prentiss lowered her head and pinched the bridge of her nose letting out a breath of air she didn't even know that she had been holding. "I know I just can't believe this is happening."

Hotch moved closer and lowered his voice. "You can't be alone in you're apartment for the time being. It's not safe."

"Where am I supposed to go? If this guy found out where I lived and managed to break-in what makes you think he won't find me somewhere else?"

"I don't know." Hotch said defeated. "Maybe you should stay with…."

Emily's brown eyes grew wide and she shook her head stopping him from even finishing his sentence. "No way, absolutely not."

"Well then we have to figure something out. You aren't safe right now."

"I know that but considering what happened between us last week don't you think it would be inappropriate for me to stay with you? Besides it's already awkward enough between the two of us here at work."

"I just don't want anything happening to you Emily."

"Sir…."

"Look I shouldn't be saying this here or right now but what happened between us last week was not a mistake. I know that you think that the only reason I kissed you was because I was upset about the whole situation with my ex wife and son but that's not true. I kissed you because I wanted too and I know that you don't really think it was a mistake or you wouldn't have kissed me back like you did."

Prentiss let out a long sigh and ran a hand through her hair. She grabbed her things and walked past him. "Look I can't do this right now ok. There may be a serial killer targeting me and I just can't deal with this right now. You're right it wasn't a mistake." She was about to walk away when she stopped and turned around. She quickly looked around making sure that no one was around and placed a sweet kiss on his lips. "We can deal with this after this case is closed and this psycho is behind bars." She slowly removed her hand from his chest.

"Fine but I'm sending a team over to your apartment complex. They will make sure anyone who doesn't belong there doesn't get in. You'll be safe for now."

Prentiss agreed and left the conference room.

***

Chapter Five: Trapped

When Emily Prentiss arrived at her apartment there where already three unmarked police cruisers outside and a van with a phony plumbing logo on the side across the street full of agents watching over everything. Even with all of this Prentiss still had a cold, eerie feeling that ran up and down her spine. Once she was inside of her apartment she tossed her keys onto the coffee table and sunk down onto the couch. She was so incredibly tired and the whole situation was feeling like some sick and twisted nightmare. As she lay there on the couch she tried to fight the thick fog of sleep making her eyelids feel heavy but it was no use; Prentiss soon let sleep take her over.

Jonas Lincoln smiled at the morons who called themselves the law as he broke into one of the tenant's mailboxes and pretended to be just anther ordinary guy going through his mail. They were obviously looking for anyone suspicious approaching the building from any angle but he had them beat already. After he had broken into Emily's apartment the night before he hid out in the apartment building and never left. He was also a handsome, clean shaven man wearing a pair of jeans and a button down shirt and he looked anything but suspicious. He tucked the mail underneath his arm and glanced over his shoulder one last time before he turned the corner and dumped it into the trash and headed for the elevators. He pressed the button for her floor and once the elevator had stopped he had to control himself not to sprint over to her door.

It was easy picking through the lock; he had been breaking and entering for years and hardly any lock or security system could hold him. When he was finally inside her apartment he quietly closed the door behind him and spotted her fast asleep on the couch. He quietly approached her sleeping form and gently moved a stray strand of hair out of her beautiful face. She began to stir and he knew that was his cue. He went over the lap top bag he had carried in with him and got out a small bottle, some rope, a gag, and a couple of syringes and a few vials full of morphine. He soaked the rag with the liquid in the bottle and just as Prentiss was finally waking up he stood over and before she even had a chance to register what was going on or fight back he covered her mouth with the rag and she passed out within seconds. He quickly tied up her wrists and ankles and gagged her and filled up the syringe with a large dose of morphine and placed it down on the coffee table. He took her cell phone off of the holder at her waist and dialed a certain number.

Back at Quantico the BAU Team had regrouped in the conference room to go over every single detail about the case. They where about to begin when the phone on the conference room table went off. Hotch leaned over and saw that it was Emily calling. He answered it and put on speaker phone.

"Hey Prentiss we were just about to…." Morgan started but was cut off by laughter.

"This isn't Emily." The voice laughed out.

Everyone looked at each other and Hotch leaned in closer to the phone. "Who is this?" Hotch asked, his voice filled with venom.

"You know even bound, gagged, and unconscious Agent Prentiss looks like a beautiful angel. There are just so many things I could do to her like this."

Before Hotch or anyone else could answer the line went dead.

***

Chapter Six: Play Time

A hazy cloud of sleep was slowly lifted from Emily Prentiss and the first thing that she could comprehend was that her head was pounding. As all of her senses slowly began coming back to her she realized that her mouth was gagged and when she tried to move her limbs she discovered that they were tied up tightly by rope that dug into her flesh every time she started to move. She choked on a sharp intake of air when a handsome young man who looked to be in his late 30's sat down on the coffee table in front of her. There was something about his face that was so familiar like she had seen him somewhere before. He smiled down lovingly at her and ran his hand gently across her cheek causing her to flinch away.

"Oh come on now Emily don't be shy."

She tried to say something back but her voice was hoarse and stifled by the gag in her mouth. Jonas tilted his head and took his time studying her from head to toe.

"I know what you're thinking Emily. You're thinking that I'm nothing but a sick and depraved monster but that's just not true. I love you and I want to take care of you. Do not fight me on this because you will not win. Now I'm going to take the gag out of your mouth but if you don't behave I'm going to have to put it back in." Jonas carefully reached over and pulled the gag out of her mouth.

Prentiss began coughing violently and looked up at him with a deadly glare. "What the hell do you want with me you bastard?"

Jonas laughed and got down on his knees, leaning his face close to hers. "I want you Emily."

She shuddered when she felt his lips close down on hers. Violently shaking her head she managed to make him back off."

"You're right." He said wiping his mouth. "There will time for that later right now I have to make another phone call excuse me."

Prentiss watched as he took her cell phone out of his pocket and went through her phone book choosing a particular number. He shot her a sly wink and walked away towards the kitchen area. Once he was out of sight Prentiss immediately began working on the ropes around her wrists and ankles. She winced in pain as the ropes dug deeper into her skin and caused blood to begin to escape.

Hotch and the rest of the team where now in front of Emily's apartment complex and there where swat cars and cruisers everywhere. Crowds of curious people where being held off by police and Hotch's cell phone went off. He looked at the name and then flipped the cell phone open.

"Good evening Aaron. I'm well aware by now that you are here but can I ask what you're plan of action is? Are you going to send in swat teams or what because trust me you really should think all of this over. You wouldn't want me to get nervous and do anything rash now would you?"

"I swear to God if you even lay one finger on her…."

"Aaron I can tell by the sound of your voice that this isn't just another job for you but it's personal. Tell me is there something going on between you and the lovely Emily that I should be aware of?"

Before Hotch had a chance to answer Jonas hung up and turned back around to the couch. He quirked an eyebrow in confusion when he saw the Emily was no longer there. He rushed over to the couch and saw the blood stained ropes on the floor. He quickly scanned the apartment looking for any sign of her and smiled deviously to himself when he heard something moving around upstairs. He took the gun he had taken from her when she was unconscious and pulled back the safety and grabbed the syringe full of morphine off of the coffee table. He made his way up the stairs as quietly as he could gently pushed open the bedroom door like he had the night before he spotted her ripping apart her closet most likely looking for the spare gun she kept in there.

Emily was just about to reach for her spare gun when she felt a large heavy body tackle hers and pin her to the ground. She did everything that she could to fight back but he was too strong and she yelled out in pain as she felt a needle stick into her arm. Everything around her was becoming fuzzy and she felt her entire body go limp. She could hardly feel it when his large hand closed down around her neck and began choking her. He removed one hand and dialed Hotch's number again. Hotch instantly picked up the phone.

"I didn't want to do this but she made me!" Jonas cried out. "She's so beautiful and I wasn't going to do this so soon but it's the only way! She will look like an angel and she will be so peaceful! I just loved her so much but she made me do this!"

Hotch's eyes grew wide when he could distantly hear the sound of Emily gasping for breath in the background. He hung up the phone and turned to his team and the the swat teams. "Move in! Now! Now! Now!"

***

Chapter Seven: Safe?

Emily Prentiss did not see her life flash before her eyes as her final breaths were being choked out of her body. She couldn't see anything but the blurred face of the man above her and she could hear the far of sound of him letting out angry sobs. Her entire body was feeling fuzzy and even if she tried to she couldn't fight back. The morphine was definitely doing its job. As he choked her with one hand she could vaguely make out the feeling of his free hand stroking her cheek. "You made me do this," was the last thing she heard before complete blackness swallowed her up whole.

The Swat Team burst into the apartment and cleared the downstairs in seconds. Hotch frantically looked around for any signs of Emily and his head shot over to the direction of the stairs when he heard someone weeping. Hotch, Reid, Morgan, and JJ cautiously made their way up the steps and Morgan pushed open Emily's bedroom door with his foot. All of their guns were instantly aimed at Jonas Lincoln when they saw the scene before them.

Prentiss was lying motionless on the floor and next to her sat Jonas rocking back and forth pulling at his hair violently. His tear stained face twisted into a strange combination of fury and remorse as he looked over Emily's body from head to toe. The whole team braced themselves when he lifted up Emily's gun from beside him. He looked up at Hotch and began tossing the gun from hand to hand.

"Put the gun down!" Morgan ordered.

Jonas began laughing and he stopped tossing the gun around and. "You know it didn't have to be this way. I loved her so much but she tried to get away and I had to stop her. I couldn't let her leave, not again."

The team looked at the unsub confused but aware that he was referring to someone else other than Emily.

I said put the gun down now!" Morgan ordered again.

Jonas Lincoln whispered that he was sorry and shoved the gun in his mouth pulling down on the trigger. His body slumped over and Hotch tucked his gun away and rushed over to Emily's side. He tilted her head back and pressed his fingers against her bruised throat frantically searching for a pulse. He began performing CPR praying that this wasn't actually happening and that she wasn't actually dead.

"Come on Emily breathe." He pleaded as he breathed more air into her mouth.

Hotch fell back in relief when he heard her start to cough. "Hotch?" She asked her voice mumbled and hoarse.

"Hotch the ambulance is here you better get her down there fast we don't know how much morphine he actually injected into her."

Without a second thought Hotch easily lifted her up into his arms and rushed her out of the apartment and out to the ambulance. He wanted to ride to the hospital with her but he knew that he had to stay behind at the crime scene. When Prentiss was off to the hospital he went back into the apartment and into Emily's bedroom where her would be murder's dead body lay.

"His name was Jonas Lincoln." Reid informed him as he carefully took the wallet out of Jonas's pocket and bagged it."

"He was nobody." Hotch replied staring at the eerie vacant look in Jonas Lincoln's bright blue eyes.

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Chapter Eight: Home

Emily Prentiss sat on Hotch's couch staring off into space. She had just been released from the hospital two days ago and despite the fact that she was still extremely shaken up and her neck was still covered in deep purple bruises she would live; thanks to one Aaron Hotchner. She hadn't been getting much sleep and every time that she closed her eyes she could still see his face. When she had finally woken up in the hospital from her morphine induced slumber she remembered where she had seen him before. She had bumped into him at a bar. Normally her creep radar worked perfectly but this time it failed her and it almost cost her, her life.

She jumped slightly when she heard the door open but she sighed with relief when she saw Hotch walk into the apartment and take a seat next to her on the couch.

"How are you doing?" He asked sincerely. "Everyone at work sends their regards and Reid said something about statistically how long it takes for a victim to get over an attack but I forgot the numbers."

Emily smiled at that, it was so typically Reid. "I'll be okay it's just going to take some time."

Hotch leaned over and gently kissed her cheek. "I know you Emily, you'll be fine."

THE END?

A/N: There will be a sequel of sorts to this but with a whole new case but there will still be a Hotch/Prentiss paring.

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Next story in series - Mother May I?.