Make It out Alive

I set up a video chat with Garcia and sat down next to Hotch and Spencer on the plane.

"Baby girl, what's going on?" Derek asked.

"I-I have a confession to make," I said, taking a deep breath.

The team sat up a little straighter, and Spencer moved centimeters closer. "If I hadn't taken my mother's name, my name would be Polly Lacey Calvetin." I paused, and once more Spencer took in a hasty breath. Hotch's expression darkend, JJ's cheer disappeared. Derek's muscular frame tightend and Gideon just looked at me sadly. Garcia's mouth opened and closed softly.

"My mother, Abigail Bryson was his first victim," I said, trying to find the will to struggle through. I couldn't meet any of my team's eyes, so I stared at the table, wringing my hands. "For seven years, he beat her. He raped her. He nearly killed her. Within the first year, my mother was pregnant. It worked in his fantasy so well that he forced her to maintain the pregnancy." I couldn't breathe. I felt the weight of my words crushing me, and I struggled to find air. Spencer took my hand into his and squeezed gently. I smiled at him, and he returned a calm smile. "The moment I was born, he snatched me away from my mother. As a child, he forced me to- to-" I started to cry. Spencer pushed the armrest that seperated us up and scooted closer. He draped his long arm around me and brushed a few tears away. "One night, when he had left to find another- another victim, my mother took me and fled. That's why we moved around so much when I was a kid, so he couldn't find us. Twelve years later, we were called to court to testify against Jared Calvetin. He wasn't a man, he was a monster. His eyes were black and cold. His hair was in greasey tendrils, his skin was pale and waxy looking. His teeth were yellow and broken. I had a breakdown right there in the middle of court." Just like I was having now. I was shuddering against Spencer and tears couldn't stop. My breath was shallow and rapid.

Garcia wiped her eyes, and JJ flicked a few tears away. Derek's eyes were soft, but he was still tense. Hotch put a gentle hand on my knee, and Gideon smiled sadly at me.

"Jared Calvetin is on death row in Texas, and has little over ten months until his execution date. He will always haunt me, though. Even when he's dead, I'll never feel safe."

I buried my face in Spencer's chest, sobbing. He rubbed my back, whispering softly in my ear. I cried until I couldn't anymore, and steeled myself to look at the team. Finally, I looked at each of them.

Garcia was still wiping her eyes. "Suga, I had no idea," she said sadly.

"I didn't expect you to. Gideon surprised me by knowing about my father," I confessed.

"We'll keep you safe, baby girl," Derek told me while the rest of the team nodded.

JJ placed a hand on my knee and squeezed gently. I smiled at her, and she returned it.

"Polly, I'm so sorry," Hotch told me.

"Please don't think that this makes me unfit for the job," I begged.

"We would never," Gideon said, looking at me in a fatherly fashion. Spencer kissed the top of my head.

Hotch and Gideon exchanged glances. "Also, we're trusting that you two will be professional, so, we're going to turn a blind eye until the point when you can't be professional in the work place," Hotch said business like.

I blinked, and Derek chuckled. Spencer made a few stuttering noises and I was sure his face was beet red. "Can we have a first date before you all start making wedding plans?" I chortled. I felt Spencer's muscles loosen a bit around me.

Derek laughed. "Oh, baby girl, we've had this wedding planned since you walked in." Garcia laughed throatily before disconnecting the chat.