"You have to fight through the bad days to earn the best days of your life"
-Unknown-

6 MONTHS LATER

Derek and Maya arrive at the office separately because Derek said he had a meeting with someone before he went to the office. It was quite suspicious, and Maya wanted to pry, but she's been trying to control that ever since the incident with Derek getting taken and Maya losing the baby. They both have been trying to remain positive and look on the bright side, but there are always bad days for both of them.

Maya walks through the lobby and office, not seeing any familiar faces from her team. She steps into Derek's office and doesn't see him sitting at his desk. She looks around the empty room before she feels a presence behind her and when she turns around its Rossi.

"What's going on?" Maya asks, setting her bag down on one of the lone chairs in Dereks office as she looks to Rossi, who stands in the doorway. "Why does something have to be going on for me to greet you?" Rossi asks and Maya sighs before she spots his hands behind his back.

"What do you have?" Maya questions, taking a wary step forward. "Oh, this" Rossi says as he hands Maya a bright red rose. "A rose..." Maya trails off, hesitantly taking the rose from Rossi hands.

"I don't like surprises" Maya states as Rossi gestures her to follow him and when Maya exits the office, she sees other colleagues standing in a line, all holding roses.

"Okay, what the actual hell is going on?" Maya asks as she continues to follow Rossi while trying to grab every rose from the people standing in line. Once they reach the conference room, Maya has a bouquet of flowers in her hands and Rossi has his hand on the doorknob.

"Rossi, I don't like surprises so, whatever it is, just tell me" Maya begs and Rossi shakes his head before he opens the door to the conference room.

Once the door opens, Maya sees an isle of roses on the floor that leading up to someone. Specifically, Derek. Fairy lights hang on the walls and the members of the team such as Garcia, JJ, Reid, Natalie, Hotch, and now Rossi stand aimlessly around the room.

Maya looks towards Derek, who has a bright smile on his face. "What is going on?" Maya asks as she walks down the isle of roses until she is stood in front of Derek with a bouquet of roses in her hand. "Well, I wanted to do this at the place we first met" Derek voices, gesturing around the conference room where he caught his first glimpse of Maya, who sat in Emily's chair.

"Do what? Derek, I don't like this" Maya says as she looks around at her team, who are practically her family even though one of them actually is, scared that they are all staring at her. All attention was focused on Maya and a sudden feeling of realization rose in her chest as Derek took Maya's hand in his and dropped down on one knee, staring up at her with his beautiful brown eyes.

"Oh my gosh" Maya mumbles as she uses the roses to cover her mouth while Garcia and Natalie squeal in unison, starstruck by the proposal in front of them as they scramble to take pictures of the interaction.

"Before I met you, I never knew what it was like to look at someone and smile for no reason" Derek starts off and Maya's eyes start to form with tears as Natalie and Garcia are already shedding multiple tears.

"I wish I could explain how wonderful you truly are. The first time I met you I knew I would love you, your voice, your personality, and your humor. The love came slow, but when it did it became clear to me you were exactly what I was looking for. What I needed" Derek explains and Maya sniffles in her tears as she tries to keep it together.

"So, with that I ask," Derek says as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a ring box and proceeds to open it, revealing a beautiful diamond engagement ring. Maya gasps slightly as she stares down at the ring then locks her eyes back with Dereks, "Will you marry me?" Derek asks and Maya chuckles as Garcia, JJ and Natalie cheer silently whilst awaiting a response.

"You don't even have to ask" Maya says and the team erupts into cheers and laughter as Derek stands to his feet and instantly places his lips on Maya's, knowing he'd have her lips, her body, and smile forever.

"Just so you know, I promised Hotch and the custodians that we'd clean this up after we get back after the case" Derek says and Maya sighs as she stares into the eyes of her newly fiancé. "I guess were cleaning then" Maya says before her and Derek break out into laughter and before they can kiss, Garcia is running in between them while Natalie snaps some pictures.

"Congratulations" Hotch says as he wraps his arms around Maya, hugging her lovingly as Rossi walks up and kisses her on both of the cheeks.

"I got a bottle of 1985 wine waiting for you after this" Rossi states and Maya chuckles as she pushes past Rossi and hugs JJ, who keeps her hold tight around Maya.

"I'm happy for you" JJ says as her and Maya pull away from the hug and Maya sends her a thankful nod before Natalie rushes over.

"So, I'm obviously the maid of honor, right?" Natalie asks. "Oh, were going that big?" Maya asks, not thinking she'd have a huge wedding.

"Excuse me?! Garcia and I have basically planned the whole thing already" Natalie cheers before the team calms down, congratulating Maya and Derek one last time before they learn about a double homicide and child abduction that happened in Wichita.

_____

"Ronny Brewer is still missing" Hotch informs as the team gets situated on the plane. "What happened to his parents?" Natalie asks before Hotch informs that his parents' eyes were glued shut and filled with sand, barley being able to see the murder happen right before them.

"I have to say this is a very organized unsub" Tara voices, "I agree, he managed to sneak into the house of the victims and glue the parents' eyes shut while also waiting around to kill them and take their son" Maya adds, Tara nodding in agreement.

"Why risk doing any of that ritual stuff at all when he only came for the kid?" Natalie asks, "He probably feels more powerful knowing the child's parents are looking for him even though they can't truly see. He could be walking behind them, and they won't even know since fear and the mother father instincts kick in" Rossi explains, Natalie nodding in understanding before Hotch assigns them a specific spot when they land.

_____

Arriving at the crime scene, Maya and Natalie notices tread marks in the front of the house. "My guess is the unsub parked his car somewhere and walked the rest of the way" Maya says as she adjusts the sunglasses on her eyes.

"What about a security system? I have a hard time believing they didn't suspect a thing" Natalie wonders, but Maya shakes her head.

"Sadly, they didn't and I'm thinking in a good upstanding neighborhood like this, people around here don't even lock their doors" Maya states, to which Natalie shakes her head in shock, "I could never have that much trust. I literally have an alarm system and two safes with guns in my house" Natalie states as Maya removes her sunglasses and sends a confused look to her sister.

"You only have 2?" Maya asks as Natalie looks over at her sister, "How many do you have?" Natalie wonders as Maya begins to count in her head. "8" Maya answers, to which Natalie's eyes practically bulge out of their sockets.

"Listen, sister. I have fought many wars in my lifetime. I need all the security and more" Maya states, patting her sisters back jokingly as she removes her sunglasses and proceeds to enter the house, side by side with Natalie.

The sisters enter the parents' bedroom and see a forensic guy snapping pictures of the blood-soaked sheets and comforter. "You think some of this blood can be from the unsub?" Natalie asks and Maya shrugs with a little hope.

"It could be and if it is we can try and get some DNA" Maya says as she circles around the bed, remembering the mothers' body was found in the hall and the father never made it out of the bed.

The two women travel out of the bedroom and into the hallway where multiple blood handprints stain the walls and pools of blood surrounds the hallway carpet. "She probably touched her husband's blood and went to go look for her son, but obviously" Natalie voices as she hovers hands over the handprints on the wall, "she couldn't see a thing."

"She spent a lot of time out here. Some of these prints have double. She was probably going in a circle and couldn't locate where her son was" Maya voices as Natalie nods and lets out a 'you don't know the half of it sigh' "These handprints are all over the house. In the bathroom, the kids' room, and even the study. Poor women had no idea where she was going in her own house" Natalie says as she steps over a pile of dried-up blood.

"I have to say this unsub is bi-polar. He killed the husband quickly, but it was clear he let the mother roam around for a good while before bashing her skull in" Maya announces, looking around the house at the bloodied handprints. "The real question is why?".

Maya's phone starts to ding and when she pulls it out, looking at the text message she has received, she sighs, "They found the body of a young boy." Maya tells Natalie before the both of them travel down the stairs of the home and rush outside to their SUV.

____

Maya and Natalie arrive at the scene and see Derek has already arrived. Stepping out of the car, they see paramedics strolling a gurney with a body bag on top of it. Maya comes up behind Derek, placing a hand on his shoulder before receiving a nod. "It was Ronny" Maya says softly, but loud enough for Natalie to hear as she looks back at the paramedics placing the body bag inside the back of their vehicle.

"How long has he been dead?" Natalie wonders, "Judging from his body temp, about 7-8 hours" Derek answers as Maya shakes her head in disbelief before she realizes that means Ronny was killed just after he was abducted.

"He was killed pretty fast then" Maya states as Derek nods in agreement, but his eyes have a hint of shock in them. "It doesn't make sense to me. He put in all that effort to take him" Derek says as Natalie wanders off to search the site where the body was found.

"It was probably about the effort to get the child instead of the child himself. It's possible this unsub just likes the thrill before the kill" Maya says, shrugging her shoulders since they see this all the time in killers. "Calm before the storm type of guy" Natalie adds, joining the group with her arms crossed over her chest.

"If you ladies are right then he's going to do this again. And soon."

____

Back at the station, the team finds out some interesting stuff. The husband's eyes were glued shut an hour before the killer left the house. Which raises the question why was the unsub hanging around for an hour with the rest of the family?

Maya reads through the file of the family that was killed and looks at their crime scene photos, seeing if she missed any clue.

Suddenly, JJ walks over to Maya, her hand on her shoulder. "It's not my business, but Morgan has been staring at that wall since we got back" JJ informs and Maya turns to look at Derek, who sits in an office, his body sitting on the love seat and his eyes staring at the beige colored walls.

Maya stands to her feet and starts to walk towards the office and when she gets there she knocks on the door, watching as Derek whips his head in the direction of the noise. "Oh, hey" Derek says, adjusting his back to straighten as Maya walks in, taking a seat on the coffee table that sits in front of Derek.

"I hate being that person, but I just want to make sure you're okay" Maya says, her hand resting on Derek's knee reassuringly as silence falls upon them. "I know you hate talking about it but were going to find the people that hurt you" Maya reassures as Derek shakes his head.

"It's not that-- it's-- he had on pajamas."

Maya tilts her head slightly as her brows knit together in confusion. "Who?" she asks. "Ronny Brewer. He had on pajamas when they found him" Derek says and Maya puts her head down, looking down at her shoes.

"And I just keep thinking that a few years' time that could be our kid and I-- I don't know. I was just so happy to be a dad, but then it's things like that that push the idea away" Derek explains as he leans forward, intertwining him and Maya's hands.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't there" Derek says softly bringing his lips to kiss the back of Maya's hands. Maya sniffles in her tears as she looks up at Derek, her eyes shiny from holding back tears, "There was no way you could've been there. It wasn't your fault and it-- it wasn't mine" Maya informs, not believing the last part 100% yet since the baby was in her stomach. If all she did was calm down and take herself off the case, not pushing her limits.

Everything would've been fine, right?

Maya stands up and takes a seat on Derek's lap before she looks down at him, placing her hand on the side of his cheek before placing her lips on his. "We're going to be great parents one day. Our chance will come, I know it" Maya says softly as Derek tightens his grip around her waist and holds her tightly, never wanting to let go.

"I know" Derek softly agrees as him and Maya slowly rock back and forth before she holds out her hand and admires the engagement ring. "On the bright side, this is an amazing ring" Maya says as her and Derek burst into a fit of laughter.

"Good. That thing cost me about an arm and 2 legs" Derek says as he stares down at the ring as it reflects from the light.

_____

Hotch and Tara get back from the recent crime scene of another family that has been killed. The difference with this murder is that the mother survived but is hospitalized and too unconscious to offer any help. After they continue to search the house and put idea together, they realize the unsub doesn't have a type when it comes to kids since the child, he abducted was a little girl.

Thats when they both decide it's time give the profile.

The team is looking for a family annihilator, who is in his early to mid-thirties. He's also intelligent and well-organized. This unsub is different from most annihilators.

Most annihilators like to be quick, but this unsub is anything but that and only kills in stages starting with the father, mother, and the abduction and murder of the child.

Judging by both murders that have happened, the mothers have gone through it worse and are seen to be the target of the unsubs rage. They announce that the mother's survival could either cause the killer to lie low out of caution, or enrage him, causing him to go after another target immediately.

The team then lets the cops know that they should tell people living in rural areas to be guarded since this killer is on the loose.

After the profile the team stays at the station. Natalie stares at the board they have set up and looks down at the pictures of the girl who has recently been abducted, Josie Zumalt. "Still no sign of her body anywhere" Maya informs, walking in and stating the information. "You think he hid it better this time?" Tara asks, to which Maya shakes her head.

"He wanted us to find Ronny's body, so he'd want us to find this one too, so the ritual is complete" Maya states and that rings a bell in Natalie's head. "That's it" Natalie says as she looks at the crime scene photos from the other family.

"You said he goes in a specific pattern, right?" Natalie asks, to which Tara nods her head. "Yeah, the father, mother and child."

"So far, the unsub has only killed the father. The mother, Ellie Zumalt is still alive and, in the hospital," Natalie informs as the team stands up knowingly.

"He's not going to kill Josie until her mother is dead" Maya adds, stepping towards the board to look down at the photos of the new family they've taped up.

"His ritual isn't over" Natalie states as Derek pulls out his phone, "What are you doing?" Natalie asks. "Getting more security at Ellie Zumalt's hospital room" Derek states, doing that in case the unsub tries to go by the hospital and finish what he started.

Reid then notices something strange and decides to inform the team about an hourglass in the newest victim's house that wasn't there in a Christmas photo of the same location.

Could the killer have brought it with him, hence the sand and the hour spent in the house in both cases?

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Hotch and JJ go to talk the mother. She describes the killer wearing heavy goggles but couldn't make out any features. She says he led her around the house using her daughter's screams, then said '11' before clubbing her. What could it mean?

____

Later, Garcia sent over child abuse records from upstate New York for Reid to speed read over. "Want some help?" Natalie asks as Reid flips to the last page in the matter of 20 seconds, "No, I'm almost... done" Reid says as he taps the sentence of a certain file as he continues to read on.

"Is something wrong?" Natalie asks as she takes a seat next to Reid, her leg brushing against his, causing his breath to hitch.

Reid clears his throat before he looks up at Natalie's innocent eyes, not minding the fact that their legs are so close together. "Um, this case--" Reid stammers as Natalie tilts her head worriedly as Reid tries to find the right words.

"Reid, say something" Natalie urges and Reid nods his head before he shakes the vivid thoughts out of his head and reveals to Natalie about a case from the 90s where a boy, Patrick, was abducted while his mother was sleeping off a drunk in the car outside. The abductor would force the kid to stare at an hourglass while he was being assaulted, and obviously this has led to the construction of his criminal MO.

It seems the kidnapper held the killer for exactly 11 hours, and they assume that the mother was told '11' because that's how long she had to save the child before she would be murdered.

So, the unsub is really trying to attack on negligent single mothers because he wishes his mother could have saved him.

With this information, JJ asks the mother to make a video apologizing for letting her child down. They assume that this will fulfill the killer's need for emotional catharsis, and he might let the daughter go. So, they broadcast her apology on the news and once it's over the best thing they can do is wait.

And waiting seems to work in their favor because the mother gets a call on her phone and it's from an unknown number, but her daughter is on the other line.

Meanwhile, Garcia is listening in and starts to track down the call, only being able to find the area, but good thing the team knows what kind of car he drives. A grey sedan.

The team drives around the neighborhood where the cell phone call came from, and they find the grey sedan parked in one an abandoned alleyway. The team arrives in the building and spots a little girl sitting down, huddled in the corner with her hands tied.

Maya places her finger over her lips, indicating the little girl has to be quiet, which she does. Natalie rushes over and begins to help Maya untie the girls' restraints successfully before the metal doors open and Patrick, the unsub, stands in the doorway with a hammer in his hand.

Rossi and Morgan point their guns in his direction, showing him, he has nowhere to go. But instead of putting his hands in the air and dropping the weapon, he decides to go down with a fight and raises the hammer to hit Rossi and Derek with, but before he can succeed, Derek and Rossi both send a shot to his body, watching as it hits the floor.

Maya covers the girls head as she shrieks from the sounds of gunshots and instantly wraps her arms around Maya.

Case closed...

__________

After hours, back at the BAU office, Derek and Maya stay true to their promise and clean up the roses in the conference room so Hotch and the custodians could go home. "You can afford a ring like this, but not bribe someone to clean up?" Maya asks jokingly as she picks up a pile of roses and throws them into the trash can.

"It gives us more time together" Derek says, making Maya roll her eyes, "We're always together" Maya adds as her and Derek finish up cleaning the roses and move onto the fairy lights that hang on the walls when suddenly a shot rings out, the bullet going through one of the large windows in the conference room.

Derek ducks before he turns and sees Maya lying on the floor with blood seeping through her shirt. "No, no! Maya!" Derek shouts as he pulls out his phone and dials 911 at the same time he kneels beside Maya.

Maya looks up at Derek as he frantically explains to the operator what has happened.

Maya winces in pain as she tugs roughly onto Derek's jacket, feeling her breathing slowing down. "You're going to be okay, Maya. Maya, I promise. I swear" Derek pleads as he brings his lips to the top of her forehead whilst tears escape his eyes.

"It hurts--" Maya states as she gets the taste of a tangy substance and realizes it's blood. "It's okay, just stay with me, baby" Derek begs before Maya's eyes flutter close and she loosens her tighten grip on his jacket.

"Maya, baby?" Derek questions, slightly shaking her limp body in his arms as the sounds of ambulance sirens ring out through the area.

Maya doesn't move. She doesn't wake up, or even bat an eyelid. Her body is limp, and breathing is slow. Derek holds his head in his hands and lets out a scream of agony as he holds Maya's body in his arms, not wanting to let go. And not wanting her to let go.

"Maya!"

TO BE CONTINUED

"May today be one of those days, when you remind yourself that all along, you have been strong"
-Mandy Antoniacci-