Mistakes

Chapter 24

*Narrators POV*

The work day was almost over and Reid still hadn't returned to the BAU. JJ was starting to get concerned, but before she has a chance to worry too much, Hotch called an emergency meeting. As soon as JJ entered the conference room, she realized that the whole team was already gathered. Even Emily was there, who was only visiting for the week. When JJ walked in, Emily shot her a quick look of concern because of what had happened earlier, but she didn't notice. Instead, she quickly took a seat next to Kate so that the meeting could get started. "Thank you all for coming here on such short notice," Hotch started as he stood in the front of the room. "I have some news that is very difficult to hear. It may upset some of you, but please leave your questions til the end," Hotch said before taking a pause. He seemed to be distracted by something while he was speaking, but JJ couldn't tell why. He was also having a hard time continuing talking. "I got a call from a state trooper about half an hour ago. He informed me that 2 males, both of them approximately 35, were involved in a serious car crash. One of the men died, and they don't know who it was. The other man is in the hospital in serious condition. They found Reid's FBI badge on the ground, so that's how he knew to call me. However, his badge doesn't have a picture of him on it, and the other man is still unidentified. They need one of us to go to the morgue and check to see if it's him," Hotch said sternly, trying to show minimal emotion. This news obviously hit everyone hard, but it hit JJ the worst. Hotch tried to keep a straight face, but it was obvious to him that on the inside he was falling apart from the news. Garcia already had tears streaming down her face and was sobbing quietly. Morgan looked like a kicked puppy and stared straight at the ground. Emily was speechless, as was almost everyone. Kate simply buried her head in her hands and sighed, and so did Rossi. JJ just stared straight ahead at the wall in front of her. She was the only one who seemed to be unharmed by the news, but truthfully, it was the hardest for her to take. "I can't go. I can't go to check if it's him, I just can't!" Garcia blurted out suddenly. "Me too. I can't go. I don't want to see him dead," Morgan admitted as he finally looked up at Hotch. "That's alright, I agree. I don't think I would be able to go either," Hotch said. Before Kate and Rossi had a chance to voice their opinions, JJ spoke up. "I'll go," she said quietly, almost whispering. "Are you sure?" Hotch asked her. "Yeah, I'm sure, I just need to go alone. When should I leave?" JJ asked, still staring ahead. "As soon as possible. Call as right when you hear any news," He commanded as she stood up from her chair. "Of course," She responded, opening the door to leave. All the team members watched her leave and sat in the room in silence when she was gone.
*
As JJ pulled into the driveway of the coroners office, she prayed to God that Reid was still alive. She couldn't go a day without him and didn't want to see him on that table. It was terrible. Only yesterday, they were kissing- well almost kissing. But now, he might be dead. She couldn't even begin to comprehend how this could have happened, and life without him would be terrible. To top it all off, he might be Henry's father, but if he dies, they'll never know the truth. After sitting in the car for a couple minutes, she slowly made her way into the morgue and met the coroner. "Ah, you're from the BAU. I just need you to tell me if this is your friend or not," the coroner said as he motioned towards the body lying in the table. It had a sheet overtop of it so she couldn't see who it was yet. JJ remained quiet but nodded to show that she understood. "Great! Let's get started," the coroner said cheerfully, which did not fit the mood. She wished he wasn't so happy, but he was just doing his job. He moved a little bit closer to the body and she followed him. "I'm going to lift the sheet up and you can check to see if this is your friend. You can tell me when your ready, and then you can confirm his identity. Are you ready?" He asked her. "Yeah, I'm ready," she said as she stared at the sheet. Slowly, the coroner lifted up the sheet to reveal the identity of the body...