No-one had seen Annabel Bradey in a decade, that was until she resurfaced in SSA Aaron Hotchner's office in Quantico. She was carrying scars both physical and mental, but wouldn't share her story. Or at least not until everyone she loved was in dang...
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Emily Prentiss was shocked to see Annie still sat in the middle of the living room when she made her way towards the coffee pot that morning. It was clear from the look of exhaustion on her face that she had chosen not to give into her need for sleep. The woman was frantic, rummaging through the sheets of paper that surrounded her as she whispered seeming nonsense to herself. What she was saying made no sense to Emily, the woman being almost silent as she made her way towards her friend having forgotten all about her need for coffee.
On the floor, Annie's hands were shaking, a clear indicator of the amount of caffeine she had consumed in the last 24 hours. She was sure it had sharpened her senses, but it had in fact done the opposite. Had Annie had taken the time to rest – to clear her mind of what she thought she had seen – she could have come back with a more level headed and organised approach. She was getting nowhere in her search because there was no method to her madness.
The photos were stretching across the rug with no method of grouping. She had spent hours trying to find the faces she needed, becoming overjoyed when she did just to learn that the photo was taken before the date she was dreading. However, she didn't have the rationality to chronologically group the photos. Her mind had been drained of any and all capability she had had in the days leading up to that moment, exhaustion had poisoned her and now she was even more unsure about the investigation she had triggered.
Emily didn't know how to react to the woman, watching as she drowning in her own guilt. The faces were staring back at her, taunting her with their smiles and perceived happily ever afters. Their smiled were suffocating Annie, her lungs burning from the toxic fumes of a life she had once loved. They were begging her to let them save her, to let them pull her onto their lifeboat. Yet, they couldn't see the water flooding into their safety, how they would soon be joining her in the cold and endless sea of pain and guilt.
She let out a scream, throwing the book from beside her, completely unaware of Emily stood behind her. The dark haired woman's eyes widened, not having seen Annie in as little control of her actions as she was right them. Even at her lowest, Annie had never exploded in that way. She had never seemed so insane as she did obsessively circling face. That worried Emily – who was well aware that something important had been happening in Aaron's office the previous day. It wasn't a surprise that the woman's mind had jumped to the most unsavoury of places, her job having led her to believe that the worst can appear from anywhere. However, she also knew that she needed to help Annie before she let her own assumption take control.
"Annie," Emily stated, moving towards the woman, "what is all this?"
Annie's head snapped towards Emily, her eyes wide in a way that worried Emily slightly, "Research, just lots of research."
"Did you sleep last night?" Emily questioned hopefully, her voice suddenly changing to a tone that couldn't be distinguished from the way she spoke to a child. Annie shook her head, picking the mug of coffee from the floor and bringing it to her lips. Emily interviened before the ginger could drink any more of the dark liquid, "We are switching you to decaf for the day."
"No, Emily, I need to find these people." Annie muttered, suddenly turning her attention back to the photos. "If I can find them past the 5th of May then it's okay, I'm wrong."
Emily was confused by Annie's words, "Wrong about what?"
"Everything." Annie whispered, suddenly turning pale as her mind filled with the nightmares that could or could not be a reality.
All she needed was to find one of the faces after the 5th of May. If that photo – of the twelve lined up, grinning as if it were a year book photo – was the last time all of the were visible, then the caption had to mean what she thought. However, Annie didn't want to be right; she wanted to prove her theory wrong. She needed to find them, otherwise she would be living with the constant guilt that she had been blind to the true actions of Gabriel and the church. For Annie, negative responsibility was what ate away at her, causing her to become blinkered to the photos. She was adamant she would find the proof that she was wrong, and that she wouldn't rest until she had.
Having watched the woman go back to her task, Emily had left her – taking a moment to pour the pre-existing mug of coffee down the sink – worry filling her chest. It was at this point that the woman had made the decision to call their Unit Chief, knowing that to understand what had driven the woman to near insanity, she had to find out what they had been discussing in his office.
She listened as the phone rang, becoming slightly concerned that it would go through to voicemail. However, almost as soon as that thought had entered her brain, the ringing stopped and a slightly husky version of Aaron's voice greeted, "Annie, is everything okay?"
Emily chuckled slightly at the irony of the situation, "Great, it's my home phone and you automatically expect it to be Annie."
"Emily?" Aaron questioned, a slightly urgency entering his voice at the woman who would rarely call him socially. "What's going on? Are you safe?"
"Yes, but, Hotch, I don't think Annie's doing so well." She explained, taking a moment to glance back to the living room where the ginger was now pulling at her hair. "What were you discussing in your office yesterday?"
There was a silence on the other end of the line, "Emily, I can't share that information."
"Hotch, Annie didn't go to bed last night, she had been rummaging through photos and muttering things that I can't understand under her breath." Emily snapped. "I don't want to think how much coffee she had drunk, but she is shaking like crazy. I think that I need to know what is going on."
Aaron let out a sigh, "We are trying to contact someone who can help us determine if it is safe to raid the compound where Annie was for the last decade."
"Oh," Emily breathed. "So those pictures-"
"Are from the website." He finished. "If she's seen something, it may help us."
"Hotch, I don't think she's seen anything." Emily declared. "I think she's making connections where there aren't any."
Once again, the line filled with silence, Aaron having known when he had started the investigation that he could lose Annie to herself. She had always fixated on the little details, obsession over the slightest sign that there could be something more than met the eye. That was why she had been so good at her job before she had left, when she looked at the victims she didn't just see what psychology had told her was the most likely effect. Annie saw everything beyond that. However, this time, it wasn't working to her advantage.
"Can you bring her into the office with you today, and I'll ask her about it then. It may be nothing, but it could also be something that breaks the case." Aaron explained and Emily hummed in agreement. "If we get called on a case today, I'll get her to say at Quantico with Garcia, she can't help us if she hasn't slept."
"I'm sorry I called you this early."
Emily could hear the movement at he other end of the phone as Aaron responded, "No, it's all fine. I want to apologise for not warning you that this may happen."
"She's my friend, I'm here for her regardless of if I expect it or not." Emily muttered with a slight smile on her face. The team were a family, and, just because Annie was a new member, didn't make her any less loved.
