Morgan frowned as he walked down the hospital ward towards JJ's room: there was a police officer posted outside her door. A little further down, there was another officer stood guard outside the door to Crow's room.
He nodded curtly to the officer outside JJ's room, then walked inside and shut the door behind him. JJ was asleep again. As much as they hated to admit it, it was a blessing for all of them; it gave them all a little more time to work through the whirlwind of emotions and uncertainties that twisted within them.
Morgan had been so relieved when he had heard that JJ had woken up for the first time. He had rushed to the hospital, only to have Emily run into his arms in tears. He had tried to ask her what was wrong, to coax it out of her, but she was speechless. Instead she had opened her clenched fist, in which was held a crumpled piece of paper. He had carefully unfolded it, almost dreading what was written on it.
On the paper there were a few distinct clusters of hesitant, jagged letters. They could have been written by a child. But they were Cyrillic letters, so they were incomprehensible to him. "Emily, what does it say?" He asked gently.
"It… says… 'I'm sorry.'" Emily replied, equally as quietly, her voice was breathy and weak between sobs.
The impact on Morgan could have been that of a physical blow; after everything that had happened, JJ had apologized. As if somehow this was any of her fault, as if somehow they blamed her for the terrible world she had been a captive in.
She had been in and out of consciousness since then, never managing to remain awake for more than about ten minutes at a time.
They had switched the ventilator to a different mode a few hours ago, when it became clear that JJ was able to breathe independently, and that the lack of control regarding her own breathing was the main source of her panic. Now the ventilator just supported her, giving her a quick top-up of air when she needed it.
Hotch was sat next to her bed, although further back than they had all sat whilst she was sedated.
"What's with the officer outside the door?" Morgan asked Hotch in a hushed tone. Hotch's face was unreadable.
"One of the victims from the warehouse Rossi and Blake raided escaped from a police transport vehicle."
"And they're worried JJ may be in danger?" Morgan asked carefully, although he had a nasty feeling that wasn't true.
Hotch shook his head slowly. "Not exactly. They're worried that JJ may try to escape, once she's able."
"That's ridiculous, Hotch. JJ is a victim, not a criminal."
"I know that, Derek. But that doesn't change the fact that two Coastguard officers were murdered within 10 feet of her. They lost two of their own, and they want to see someone pay for it. The DA is charging her as an accessory to murder." Hotch massaged his temples wearily. He knew that if they had the evidence, they would charge her for the murders of the other people she had killed whilst captive.
He was still wrestling with the idea in his own mind. Yes, JJ had been a captive, and her body alone bore testament to the tortures inflicted upon her. Yes, there was no doubt in his mind that she had acted out of self-defense, one way or another. But 23 people were still 23 people. 23 lives snuffed out.
"Hotch, she had no choice." Morgan said earnestly.
"I know." Hotch sighed.
Morgan frowned. "No, you don't. You weren't in that hellhole. You don't know what it was like. You don't know what she was like." He paused, fighting off the lump that was forming in his throat. "They took everything from her. For God's sake, Hotch, she answers to the name 'Mutt'! Hasn't she suffered enough already?"
