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DEREK SPED to Agent Sam's home in a blind state of fear and stress with JJ, Prentiss, and Ophelia all in the car with him. "He's still not answering," Ophelia announced, defeated. Derek hit the steering wheel, a dull thud erupting under his palm. "DAMNIT, Hotch!" He exclaimed. Ophelia watched, almost expecting Derek to yell again. "How far are we?" JJ asked, peeking her head through the two front seats that Derek and Ophelia sat in. "It's just down the road," Ophelia recalled, having worked with the agent before. "Look, Aaron's car," She pointed to hit familiar black SUV outside of the agent's estate. Shortly after they sped to a halt, an ambulance pulled up, nearly in the yard. Derek muttered words Ophelia couldn't hear under his breath as he led the team inside. In front of the leather couch was Aaron, hunched over the agent's barely conscious body. No trace of anger was found on his face anymore, only pure, undeniable terror possessed his features. The agent was beaten badly, bleeding into Aarons hands as he tried to coax answers out of him. "Sam," He tried to get the agent to regain focus. "Jack and Hayley, are they okay?" He asked, speaking clearly. "I'm so sorry, Aaron," That was not the answer he wanted to hear. He consoled the agent regardless. "It's okay, Sam," He replied meekly as the paramedics lifted him into the stretcher. "My phone," He called out aimlessly. "He took it," His voice was horse as he lost consciousness once again. Derek and Aaron shared a look as he stormed out of the house, before the paramedics could even reach the door. "Hotch!" Derek called after him, racing to the pileup of cars outside. Ophelia and the other two agents stared at each other, stunned and at a loss of words. Ophelia watched as the agent was wheeled out of his house. They heard the loud revving of Hotch's engine, snapping them out of their bewildered trance. They followed Derek down the lawn where they were met with Hotch speeding away in his SUV, leaving Derek in his dust. "He probably called Haley from Sam's phone," Derek wracked his brain for answers on what to do next. "We have to follow him,"
After a few minutes of aimless driving, Hotch finally called Derek. "Morgan, he's leading them right to him," Aaron's voice was dark and determined. "Where is he?" Derek questioned, preparing to change his direction. "They were in New Jersey, he's got at least a 20 minute head-start-- he could be there by now," Hotch rambled on. "Hey, Hotch, what you need to do right now is stay calm. I'm connecting Spence and Garcia now," He clicked a few buttons on his phone and put it on speaker phone, allowing the other agents to hear. "Hotch, where would he take them?" Ophelia heard Spencer question. "It has to be of some significance to you, he doesn't do anything without some sort of meaning," Just then, the agents heard a dark and unfamiliar voice enter the call. "Took you long enough, I thought this phone was dead or something," Derek and Ophelia's eyes met. They were bracing themselves for the worst. "Why so quiet? You usually lash out when you're frustrated," Ophelia winced at the sound of his voice; just knowing who was on the other side and what they were capable of. "I'm not frustrated. You're more predictable than you think," Aaron's voice was the calmest Ophelia had heard it since the prison. "Am I?" Foyet questioned. "You didn't know where Haley was, so you made her come to you," He stated. "You make me sound lazy," Foyet mused on the other side of the line. "You know what I've been thinking?" He started before Aaron could respond. "Haley looks good with brown hair," The world seemed to go silent. The only sound was Foyet's sinister voice and Ophelia's heavy breathing. "She's lost some weight. Maybe it's from all the stress you cause her. Where's the little man?" Ophelia clenched her jaw tightly. "Oh, there he is," Her fists clenched her vest so tightly that she couldn't feel them anymore. "Does he like Captain America because of you?" At that moment, there was no doubt in Ophelia's mind that the man wasn't bluffing. She heard a ring coming from the other line. "That's your wife," "Mrs. Hotchner," He changed his voice to a silky smooth country accent. There was a pause before he spoke again. "Okay, open the gate and I'll drive in," She heard another click and the call was over. "Aaron? I've really gotta go," And just like that, the reaper left the call just as quickly as he had joined. "He's going to your house," Morgan stated, making a swift U-Turn in the road. "I know," Aaron choked out. "I'm sending a full tactical team, Hotch," Derek's voice was reassuring, but Aaron couldn't be consoled right now. "Good," He replied, his hands still sweaty yet stiff on the wheel. "We're on our way," Aaron silently nodded and the other team membered heard him disconnect the call. Derek threw his phone into the middle console and gripped the wheel, pressing the petal to the floor of the car.
