unedited

and it's a bit of a lengthy one sorry lads

THIRTY SIX. THE SECOND LETTER

"HE LEFT ANOTHER NOTE," HOTCH THREW AN ENVELOPE ONTO THE ROUND TABLE THE NEXT MORNING, HIS FACE FLUSHED WITH ANGER. The first one to pick up the evidence was Spencer, whose eyes moved back and forth as he tried to figure out what the words meant.

"I did this all for you, my love. When we are finally together, we will return to His embrace with our hands intertwined," he recited, his brows knitted together in thought. "This could allude to a possible plan for a murder-suicide, one of the most common outcomes for obsessive stalkers."

"What does he mean by 'I did this for you'?" Derek asked, taking a seat while on high alert for Daisy's entrance. He had been furious when he found out what had been happening, and somewhat hurt he hadn't been notified sooner. To him, keeping his family safe was the most important thing, and the idea that someone he loved was in danger hurt him more than anything.

To be fair, it was just Spencer that had been told from the beginning, otherwise Daisy had  only told Hotch herself. The others had found out from one another, and it all led full circle back to the newest member of the BAU.

She and Hotch had stopped by her apartment earlier in the day for a change of clothes, and when she'd seen that here was more post in her letterbox, she'd wanted to leave as soon as she could. Hotch didn't complain once - he just made sure she knew he was there for her.

Currently, she was changing in the restroom, not exactly feeling comfortable wandering around in the sweater she'd borrowed from her boss.

"That's where it gets weird," JJ piped up, gesturing the files in front of everyone. "Garcia ran a check through all of Harrison's travels since Liberty Church - every single city has had a murder around the time he visited, all with the same victimology and M.O. We were never called in because there was no evidence to tie them together."

"How can we be sure it was him?" Hotch's question was answered as soon as he opened the file, his stomach churning at the images of dead women with a single gunshot wound to the heart. They were positioned and placed in river reeds, a clear sign of remorse. His jaw clenched. The resemblance to Daisy was uncanny. "He's been practising for the real thing."

The room fell silent as Daisy stepped inside, her cheeks rather pale and her lips downturned. She ignored the stares of her coworkers and took a seat beside Hotch, giving him the opportunity to shift his leg so that it touched hers. He knew she appreciated physical comfort, it was something she'd never shied away from.

It seemed to be rubbing off on him, too. When they'd woken up that morning, it appeared that the man hadn't let go of her all night, and she hadn't tried to move away. It was the best sleep both of them had gotten in a while, especially considering the circumstances.

"Should you really be working this case?" Rossi asked softly, his eyes sympathetic towards Daisy. He reached over, gently rubbing her shoulder. Daisy nodded quickly and took the extra file from the middle of the table, avoiding eye contact with the team.

"It's not something I have to consider," she muttered, and he looked over at Hotch. The unit chief shook his head, indicating that she wasn't in the best headspace to accept criticism. If she was, he'd have been the first to tell her. She was right, though. This case concerned her and only her, and she'd be damned if she let anything bad happen.

"Alright," Emily's eyes lingered on the woman. "So, assuming he committed these murders, we know his victimology. He goes after women who are like Daisy, physically. Do we know what their personalities were like?"

Tears welled up in Daisy's eyes at the sight of corpses that looked almost exactly like her. She felt bile rise at the back of her throat and she stifled a gasp. The fact that he was murdering innocent girls for no reason other than practice made her feel ill beyond reason.

"Daisy, you don't have to-" Hotch began, noticing her discomfort, but Daisy cleared her throat, cutting him off.

"We need to draw him out," she said, her voice coarse. The team looked at her in surprise. She was twirling her pen between her fingers as a method of distraction. "If we can get in touch with the local authorities of each case, we can find out where he abducted them. If there's similarities, I'll go somewhere where he can find me, and we can catch him when we've got the advantage."

"We can't put you in danger like that," Derek instantly protested, and Daisy looked up at him with a slightly cold look. It wasn't intentionally harsh, but, as she told Hotch, it was clear that she wasn't going to tolerate chivalry.

"We don't exactly have a choice," she said softly, and he gritted his teeth, mulling it over. Daisy adjusted the sling around her neck, hiding the discomfort her wound was giving her.

"She's right," Spencer agreed. He didn't seem too happy about the idea either, but he knew that it would be the most effective action to take. "If she's the object of his desire, then she'll be the one to get him to come out of hiding. It's only logical."

Derek sighed unhappily. "Fine. But I'm going with you."

"She needs someone who won't intimidate the Unsub," Rossi shook his head, thumbing through the file. "If she's with you, he'll either see you as competition, or will be intimidated and find another method to get to her."

Everyone looked over at Spencer. He lifted his head and saw the stares his way. His jaw slacked a little. "But from what we know, the Unsub is an alpha male. If he sees Derek as a threat, he's more likely to intervene and compete for her affection."

"But he knows who you are," JJ mentioned. "You were at the church; he'd assume you two were in a relationship."

"But he'd only step up if he thought it was a romantic relationship, not a friendship," Daisy pointed out. "And as much as I love him, Spencer isn't exactly the intimidating type."

Spencer shrugged, admitting his agreement.

They all then looked at Hotch, who hadn't said a word since the idea was brought up. His jaw tightened as he thought things through, and he gripped his pen so tight his knuckles paled. "Morgan, it's gonna have to be you. But you can't make it obvious that you're there to catch him. You have to catch his attention, yet make sure he doesn't suspect anything."

Derek relaxed a little more now that he had the opportunity to insert himself between Daisy and Harrison. He exhaled, and smiled over at the woman. "I'm sure we can figure something out, right Alvarez? Just like old times?"

Daisy nearly choked on her own spit. She lifted her hand and coughed to play it off, but her pink cheeks said otherwise. Ignoring Hotch's burning stare, she managed a playful chuckle in Derek's direction. "In your dreams, Morgan."

"JJ and Reid, contact the relevant P.Ds and gather as much information on the murders as you can. Morgan and Prentiss, you two scope out local bars, clubs - places where a stalker can conceal himself while he prepares to strike. Rossi and I will go to Daisy's apartment, ask around about suspicious activity and look for security footage," he then looked at Daisy. "You'll come with us."

The team nodded at the instructions. Daisy glanced around, tucking some hair behind her ear. "Thank you for doing this, guys. You didn't have to."

"Of course we do," JJ said, almost in disbelief. "You're safety means everything to us."

Everyone hummed in agreement, and Daisy looked down, using the back of her hand to wipe her eyes. 

★☆

Daisy walked into her apartment building on her own, having been dropped off further up the road while Hotch and Rossi went in the private car park downstairs. It was important that if he was watching, Harrison knew she was in town. 

With a deep breath, she pushed the door open and walked through, her head held high enough that she appeared confident. She did her routine, checking her postbox, taking out the flyers and closing it once more. She stepped into the elevator, joined by Hotch and Rossi a moment later. 

"You alright?" Hotch asked as the doors closed, his hand hovering over the small of her back. 

She nodded, adjusting her sling. "Do you think I can take this off soon?"

"You got shot less than a week ago," Rossi scoffed, looking at her with a disapproving expression. Daisy pulled a face, and he looked over at Hotch before back down at her. "Alvarez, the stitches only came out the other day."

"Yeah, but I can move it," she insisted, lifting it out of her sling despite the pain it caused her. The men either side of her didn't appear too impressed. She shrugged, putting it back down. "I'm sure I can figure something out."

"We'll see," Hotch sighed. The elevator dinged to signal that they had reached Daisy's floor, and she led them down the hall. Once she reached the door, she unlocked it and stepped inside, allowing her coworkers to wander and look for anything that could help them. 

"You know, for someone so cheery as you," Rossi looked around, his hands tucked in his pockets. "I expected a little more colour in here."

"I'm never home enough to decorate," Daisy shrugged, walking over to her blinking answering machine. She pressed the button on right side of the console, letting the messages play.  

"You have three new messages. First message: received yesterday, ten-forty-five am."

"Hey, hun!" Rhea's voice chimed. "Richard's been bugging me about another date. You need to call him back at some point, otherwise I'll lose my printing privileges. Come visit as soon as you can, alright? We'll go and see Beanie together."

"Second message: received yesterday, one-oh-one pm."

"..."

Heavy breathing sounded from the other line. It last around five seconds, before the person abruptly hung up. Daisy squeezed her eyes shut, feeling chills run across her body. 

"Third message: received today, twelve-thirty-two pm."

"What happened to you?" Daisy froze at the sound of his voice. It sounded slightly deeper over the phone, but it was unmistakably his. "Why are you wearing a sling? Did something happen? Baby, you gotta pick up the phone and talk to me. I can protect you. We can finally be together."

Hotch came up behind Daisy, checking to see that the voicemail was being recorded. He noticed how her shoulders were rising and falling quicker than usual, and he quickly pulled her away from the machine. "Daisy, breathe."

"I can't," she could feel her chest closing up. She reached for him, burying her head in his shoulder. "Aaron, he saw me this morning. What if he saw you?"

Hotch didn't answer, seeing as the phone began to ring. Daisy latched onto his arm, her eyes wide and panicked. She already knew who it was, and it seemed the others did too. Rossi pulled out his phone and dialled Penelope. "Garcia, I'm gonna need you to trace a phone call."

Hotch looked down at Daisy, before he reached for the phone and answered it. He held the device up to her, and she hesitated, taking it from him. Hotch held her by the waist, as if encouraging her to talk. 

Closing her eyes, Daisy took a deep breath. "Hello?"

"Daisy? Oh my love," his voice was breathy, uneven. Daisy swallowed at the familiarity. "Are you alright? Did you get my messages?"

"Yes," Daisy said softly. She composed herself, gripping the phone tightly. "I did. Thank you for thinking about me."

Hotch nodded, indicating that she was saying the right thing. 

"I think about you every second of the day," Harrison insisted. She could hear the smile in his voice; how his scarred lips curled up in satisfaction. "But why did you let you let the marks I gave you heal? Those were special."

"I-I'm sorry," Daisy spluttered. She was silent for a few seconds, before she cleared her throat. "Listen, Harry. Have you...been killing women who looked like me on your way to Virginia?"

"No, no, I would never," he said quickly, his tone defensive. "I set them free. I wanted to make sure I did it right when I found you."

"Harry, you're a murderer," she blurted out before she could help herself, and her eyes widened in realisation of what she had just done. She had said something to agitate him. Her hand clapped over her mouth and she looked at Hotch. He pulled her close, his hands tangling in her hair. Rossi was peering through the curtains, but couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. 

"I'm not!" he was angry now. "I'm not a murderer! Don't you dare talk to me like that! I did this all for you!"

"If you did it for me, why haven't you approached me yet?" she demanded, trying to control her shaky voice. It was a lot harder to be her usual professional self when she was the person being preyed on. "You've had so many opportunities to come and face me, but you're hiding behind a pen, or a phone. Like a coward."

"You bitch!" he cried. "You're going to pay for that! I'm going to get you tonight, and you'll regret ever doubting me."

Daisy gritted her teeth and looked at Rossi. He gave her a thumbs up to let her know that Penelope had locked onto the signal. She felt herself relax a little bit. "I'm out tonight, sorry. Try again another time."

"Why you little-"

Daisy hung up without another word. 

★☆

oooooOoO

also you guys are um literally the best

thank you for being so understanding about my mental health, it seriously means the world

big hearts 

also i have no idea where i'm gonna end this book?? like how long do i keep it going for cause criminal minds is dramatic as fuck 

i'm tired bye