"I once believed love would be burning red. But it's golden like daylight"
-Taylor Swift-

Back in DC, Hotch gets stopped by a government official and handed a note, then invited into a limo. He's taken to a secret building to meet someone. It proves to be a gentleman's club. Hotch is now meeting the official to talk about the Silk Road investigation aka when the League of Assassins were being hired.

Turns out, the investigation isn't going well, and a DEA agent is dead, and two others are missing.

"I feel like you just live here, which is ironic because I've seen your apartment" Natalie voices as she comes up to Reid, who is sitting at his desk reading a large book. He places the book down and looks up at Natalie who takes a seat on the side of his desk, looking down at him with a smile on her face.

"Well, I wake up quite early and surprisingly, I love my job" Reid states even though he loves more than his job. "You're better than me, Reid" Natalie jokes as she playfully places her hand on Reid's shoulder, causing Reid to feel butterflies in the pit of his stomach as his eyes scan each of her fingers that rest on his shoulders before she slowly slides it off, letting out a sigh.

She goes to walk to her desk when Reid stands up abruptly. "Wait, uh- Hmm" Reid mumbles to himself as he tries to calculate what to say in his head. Natalie knits her eyebrows with worry as she turns towards Reid, looking at the questionable look on his face.

"I don't think I've ever seen you so... flustered. What is it? Do I smell or something?" Natalie asks, "What? No! No! You smell great. You smell- amazing, like flowers- The good ones, the ones my grandma used to get" Reid rants before he mentally slaps himself and physically shakes his head as he realizes what he's just said.

Natalie chuckles and her laugh is like music to his ears, it drowns out any sound around him, causing him to only focus on her and only her. "I just wanted to ask- If you- Are you-" Reid stammers, to which Natalie jokingly nudges his shoulder. "Come on, spit it out. I'm getting nervous here" Natalie says as Reid nervously scratches the back of his neck.

"I'm going to this dinner event in two days and I'm the only one, out of about 40 people, without a date-". "Oh, so you're asking me on a date?" Natalie teases as she takes a step closer. "Yeah, yeah. I guess I am. I don't know how fun it'll be because it's a science event and most of them are in their 70's anyway, but there will be a bunch of speeches, videos and music to dance too" Reid explains while Natalie slowly nods her head.

"Well, I'd love to go with you" Natalie answers which brings a smile to Reid's face. "Really?" Reid asks for a sign of reassurance, to which Natalie chuckles and nods her head confidently. "Yes. How could I say no?" Natalie questions, jokingly poking Reid in the arm before she turns on her heel and walks to her desk.

_____

Meanwhile, at Maya and Derek's house, Derek is frantically getting ready. He's pacing around the house after hearing about the new case that could involve the Dirty Dozen. "You seriously got to stop pacing, you're giving me a headache" Maya says as she pours herself a cup of coffee and takes a sip of it.

"I don't understand how you aren't pacing" Derek argues as he rustles through his bag, desperately looking for his car keys.

"Derek" Maya calls out but Derek isn't listening and continues to frantically look through his bag. Maya then sets her cup down and walks over to Derek and as she stands in front of him, he doesn't even shoot her a glance. Maya sighs and places her hands on top of his, watching as his movements slow down and he is finally able to catch his breath.

"Derek" Maya calls out once again and he finally lifts his head up, their eyes meeting each other's.

"First off, the keys have been in your pocket the whole time," Maya starts off, having Derek looks in his front pocket and pull out his car keys which he was looking for, "second, can you please calm down? Everything is going to be okay" Maya tries to reassure although Derek is still paranoid since he knows they will be working with NSA and some DEA agents on the new case that they just go pulled into

"Can we at least go see what it's about?" Maya asks to which Derek lets out a sigh and nods his head before Maya pulls him in for a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck comfortingly while he wraps his arms around her waist and leans his head down on her shoulder, inhaling her scent and rubbing on her lower back as the couple slowly rocks side to side. Enjoying every second.

_____

Now it's time for the team to work on the case with some people from the NSA and the DEA. "3 weeks ago, undercover DEA Agent Mark Bowers disappeared. He was based in El Paso, but 5 days ago his body showed up in Ciudad Juarez, just across the Mexican border" Garcia begins to explain before Tara voices that Ciudad Juarez is one of the most dangerous cities in the world.

"Not only was Agent Bowers found strangled, but he also had another human face covering his own face" Garcia states, stammering over her own words as she clicks the crime scene photos onto the screen. "Human face?" Natalie questions, knitting her eyebrows with shock as the team continues to go over the case.

"Well, It is typical for drug cartels to use a corpse to send a message" Maya says, mostly from experience. "Yeah, body parts sent to family members" Derek adds. "A face on top of another face could easily mean he's undercover or he's two-faced" Tara adds, Maya nodding her head in agreement since that's a good approach to the case but if Tara's thought is correct, that's bad news for the two missing agents because they were both undercover.

"John Portman vanished a week ago. And then Sarah Miles disappeared yesterday. All of these agents were investigating the Libertad drug cartel" Garcia adds, placing their photos up onto the screen so the team can get a good look at them.

"Well, if someone knew that they were undercover, then there has to be a mole on the inside." Derek states while Hotch voices that the team must consider all possibilities since this cartel is in fact unique in a few ways. For example, the cartel appeared on the Darknet after the Silk Road was shut down. It has an online and an on-the-ground component based in El Paso. It's run by someone named George Washington, which is an identity that can be assumed by different individuals.

"All right. You'll all head to El Paso and find out what happened to the missing agents," Hotch states while Natalie slightly tilts her head, "And where will you be?" Natalie wonders. "I will run the cyber part of the investigation from here."

_____

At the DEA office, Hotch struts in and looks around, trying to figure out who to talk to first. A woman with luscious blonde hair that goes beyond her shoulders whips her head in his direction, looking Hotch up and down, admiring his very professional attire. The women walk up to Hotch, being the first to greet him.

"Aaron Hotchner?" The women questions, to which Hotch nods his head and puts out his hand to give her a form shake.

The women smiles and looks down at Hotch's hands. "I don't shake hands with people who invade my work place" The women says with her strong Russian accent, leaving a certain tang in her voice. "You've never shaken your co-workers hands before? Your friends?" Hotch asks while the women in front of him keeps her hands intertwined together whilst looking at him.

"Friends show their love in times of trouble, not with handshakes" The women argues, Hotch not having the energy to say anything back before another DEA agent waltz over. "I guess you've met our harsh agent, Agent Alina Ivanov. I'm assistant DEA director Bernard Graff" Graff introduces as he looks over to Alina, wonder what she said to him.

"We could always use the extra help, but I'm surprised the NSA pulled you into this" Graff starts off as the three of them begin to walk side by side, giving Hotch a slight tour of the office. "Yes, very surprised. You should be out hunting psychopaths that cut up prostitutes or men who bite into human flesh" Alina voices before Hotch explains that his team is also working on a case and they think there may be a crossover with their cases.

"You mean Giuseppe Montolo and the online hit men" Graff states, already knowing the answer. "Yes. We're interested in whoever the successor to the Silk Road may be, and Libertad seems to fit the bill" Hotch states and Alina knits her eyebrows in confusion as she looks between the two men, who continue to chat about the possible combining cases before a man Simon Kahn rushes out of a room, highly upset.

"He didn't seem happy" Hotch points out. "The man who just left was our confidential informant Simon Kahn" Graff introduces. "Our specialists have been posing online as buyers and dealers. We made contact with Simon 5 months ago, who alerted us to the hybrid nature of Libertad. He's a Tor network relay operator for them. He wants out but claims he's not being allowed to quit" Graff explains which raises more questions from Hotch. "Well, is he being threatened?" Hotch asks.

"So he says" Alina answers. "Have you tried to find any?" Hotch asks, to which Alina scoffs annoyingly as she feels Hotch thinks they can't and don't do their job correctly. "Yes, but you cannot break through a wall with your forehead. It's not easy" Alina states, her Russian accent strong and heavy.

"What about the real ID of George Washington?" Hotch asks and Alina shakes her head. "It took months for him to come in. He was close to giving name, but now... he's scared like baby seeing a clown for the first time" Alina states, using Russian sayings to describe things.

"I'd like to get my own analyst on this, if you don't mind. She'll work out of the BAU" Hotch says, causing Alina to roll her eyes in annoyance. "I mind" Alina voices while Graff allows him to do so.

"How about you show him where he can set up" Graff orders Alina, making Alina raise her eyebrow in shock as she crosses her arms over her chest and pushes past Graff, allowing Hotch to follow her to the conference room where Hotch is able to set up.

"I hope you and your team aren't intimidated by me. I am just visiting and working on a case with you" Hotch voices as he opens the file and starts read through it. "Hm, visiting is good, but home is better. Home is where you belong" Alina states before she takes a step towards Hotch, slightly intimidating him but when he raises his head and looks down at her with determination and fearfulness, Alina realizes he's not easy to scare but... neither is she.

_____

Meanwhile, at the morgue, the doctor explains to Natalie, Derek, and Reid that whoever did this took his time in carefully cutting off the face of the victim.

"Would you say the unsub has special skills?" Natalie asks, but the doctor shakes her head, "I wouldn't go that far. But to dissect the fascia and reflect the musculature off the face takes time and patience" The doctor explains before the three of them discover that the killer strangled the DEA agent with his bare hands, then glued a bunch of tacks to the guy's face so that he could stick the woman's face onto the corpse which means the unsub spent a lot of time with the dead body.

And since it's not the typical M.O. of a drug cartel kill, this feels like the unsub is getting off somehow in taking the time to savor his kill...

_____

At a bar, Maya and JJ arrive in the black SUV, which Maya is in the driver seat when JJ gets a message from her husband, Will. She is sent a picture of her two baby boys and smiles as she looks down at the photo before showing it to Maya, who smiles but also cringes slightly at the sight of two boys.

"I can't believe you have two" Maya sighs, looking to JJ who chuckles softly before clicking her phone off and placing it in her pocket.

"I know right. Now it's just you and Morgan's turn" JJ jokes whilst Maya groans in annoyance and rolls her eyes to the back of her head as she and JJ exit the SUV and walk towards the bar. "Please, don't become Garcia" Maya says as she opens the door to the bar, allowing JJ to enter first.

When they arrive inside the bar, there is very little people in it. Music plays but it's not as loud and the TV is on but silent and a few men sitting at the bar watch as the game plays. They see a worker cleaning out a glass and walk up to the bar to introduce themselves.

"Hi. Uh, we're Agent Jareau and Regan with the FBI. We're wondering, have you seen this woman?" JJ asks, showing a picture of the woman they're looking for and the man looks between the two ladies standing in front of him and sighs, uninterested in what they have to say.

"She would've been here 3 days ago" Maya adds, crossing her arms over her chest as she looks to the man who shrugs. "It's a bar. Lots of people coming and going in here" The man says and Maya scoffs, "Well, she's missing, so any information you can give us will be greatly appreciated" Maya says, but the man goes back to cleaning the glass and mumbles a 'sorry' while he walks away.

"You know what, I forgot to ask. Who's the general manager here?" Maya asks, leaning on the counter as she looks to the man who slowly walks back towards them. "Um, I am" The man answers and Maya smiles, nodding her head.

"Well, that's just great because we actually got an anonymous tip that somebody was skimming off the receipts, so we're just gonna need to take a quick look at your books" Maya states and the man stammers over his words as he looks between the two women looking at him, "waiting for him to give them his books".

"I thought you were interested in a missing person" The man says, to which JJ nods, "We are. But the FBI also handles federal tax violations. I mean, you have books, right?" JJ asks while Maya continues on the ruse. "Cause if you don't have books, we're going to have to shut this place down" Maya says as she pulls out her phone, pretending to call back up and that's when the man asks to see the photo again and when he does, he states that the women in the photo wasn't at the bar very long. She was talking to a woman who looked like a soccer mom.

_____

Alina and Hotch are left in the conference room after Graff is called someplace else. Hotch notices Alina intensely watching Graff exit the room as if she doesn't trust him. As if there is something secretly going on. "I can tell you're big on trust. You're Russian so you hate betrayal, right?" Hotch asks and Alina swallows a large lump in her throat.

"Depends. We've all betrayed someone one way or another" Alina answers as she stands to her feet. "I still don't understand why you're here" Alina starts off as she looks out the large conference room windows and sees Graff too occupied with talking to another agent.

"What's going on here?" Hotch asks, no hesitation and wanting to get straight to the point. "I wish I could tell you" Alina states as she looks over at the board Hotch has set up in the conference room before meeting his eyes again until his phone begins to ring. Once he answers it and begins the conversation with the person on the other line his eyes remain on Alina until he hangs up.

"My team have found evidence of a serial killer working in the El Paso area using the drug violence as a cover" Hotch states, slipping his phone in his pocket and making Alina's eyebrows furrow in slight worry but she tries to hide it and clears her throat roughly, remaining strong. "Well, it's a good thing you're on this case, then, isn't it?."

_____

Couple hours later in El Paso, Natalie and Reid arrive at the dump site where they have found Agent John Portman with his face missing. They walk up to Agent Lopez, who is sadly watching the ambulance take away his now dead friend and fellow coworker.

"Sorry about your friend" Natalie gives her condolences and Lopez accepts them gracefully before he explains that the coroner said John was in bad shape and was severely dehydrated and had evidence of electrical burns, meaning he was held and possibly tortured.

"Do you know if John had any significance to the area?" Reid asks, making Lopez furrow his eyebrows, "You mean like a mass grave nearby? No" Agent Lopez answers before he is called someplace else, leaving Reid and Natalie to check out the area themselves.

"You think the unsub has given up on the forensic counter measure?" Natalie asks, looking over to Reid as the hot sun beams down on them. "I'm not sure. It could be multiple things. Border control, or he's simply getting careless and bored" Reid explains while Natalie wonders where the killers home base is since two bodies were found in two different locations, but given how much easier it is for an American to go back and forth across the border, it's easier to say it's El Paso.

Now it's time for the profile. The team thinks it's likely an American serial killer who's either a member of the cartel, or who the cartel sends the names of victims to. They suggest that the DEA agents could have been found out because they weren't able to recruit enough people.

_____

Now at the DEA office, Alina finds Hotch who is just getting off of the phone. "Graff said I should let you know that he's hosting a ground investigation into Libertad suspended for now" Alina informs, to which Hotch nods his head. Alina goes to leave after she provides him with the recent information given but figures she should stay instead.

"You don't trust us, do you?" Alina questions as she slowly turns and locks eyes with Hotch.

"You don't trust me either. You have made that very clear" Hotch states, making Alina chuckle softly at his correct optimism. "I think you all don't trust each other. I see how Graff speaks to the other agents. He doesn't talk to them like how he talks to you. He knows what's going on and he's leaving you out of the loop which is why you are so hard to connect with" Hotch rants as Alina bites the inside of her cheek and secretly balling up her fist at her sides.

"Before I got here, what did Graff tell you to do?" Hotch asks, making Alina's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "What gave you the idea he told me what to do?" Alina asks as Hotch takes a step forward.

"You knew my name and you were already on high alert the minute I walked in" Hotch answers and when Alina goes to open her mouth, one of her fellow coworkers burst into the room with sad news.

"Simon Kahn, our C.I., is dead. His car exploded outside his apartment."

_____

In El Paso, the team has identified the first victim- who was a man, not a woman, and generic druggie as well. Garcia lets them know that she found a bunch of people with missing faces in Juarez, but interestingly, there were no victims like that north of the border until the file was sent to the El Paso police department.

Alina is at her desk when she gets a call and when she looks down at her phone, it's an unknown number. Alina furrows her eyebrows in confusion and proceeds to answer the call, putting the phone to her ear. "Who is this?" Alina asks before Hotch's voice is on the other line.

"Meet me outside by my car" Hotch states before he hangs up, leaving Alina speechless but eager to know why.

Moments later, Alina sees Hotch walking towards his car slow and steady. "Car is not enemy, you going to drive it or not?" Alina questions before Hotch clicks his remote car starter and watches as the car beeps and doesn't do anything like explode for example. "You want to help, right?" Hotch asks, "Graff asked me to meet him at a hotel to talk. I figured you could tell me what you know on the way there" Hotch states as he enters his car on the driver side, allowing Alina to enter on the passenger side, which she does.

Meanwhile, Graff is walking to his car and gets in, ready to meet Hotch at the hotel. Unexpectedly, he is shot right in the head the moment he got into his car.

Hotch and Alina get called to the scene, shocked when they pull up. "Looks like it's a suicide" The NSA guy says as the two agents walk up. Alina shakes her head in disbelief as she sees Graff's dead body holding his own gun and his body resting up against the steering wheel... lifeless.

The same NSA friend informs Hotch and Alina that Graff's secret USB drive is missing. Hotch, naturally, doesn't believe the situation and states that him and Alina should go see one of the agents Graff was close with like Agent Mitchell.

"Before we go, Graff told me you were mole. Said I, and all the other agents, should watch out for you and not let my guard down" Alina explains before the two of them get into the car. "Who do you think killed him?" Hotch asks and Alina shrugs her shoulders. "Not sure but whoever did is coward man. But sometimes coward men are hard to find."

Hotch and Alina go to see Mitchell, who says that she and Graff thought Hotch was the mole, making Alina's story add up. Anyway, Mitchell is the one who has the thumb drive, and says Graff gave it to her for safe keeping.

On the thumb drive, Hotch finds evidence that someone in the NSA requested the face/off killer's file. So, what, the NSA guy is the villain, and the serial killer is his operative?

_____

Meanwhile in El Paso, Garcia goes through Alvin Coles, one of the victims, phone records and find Jillian Carter's information, and since she matches the description of the person that was meeting Sarah Miles, they rush out to grab her. She claims to know nothing, even when confronted with plenty of evidence being presented in front of her.

"Whatever you find, you can't prove it was me on the phone" Jillian states and Maya raises her eyebrows in shock and scoffs in disbelief. "The phone has voiceprint recognition" Maya argues, "That's not foolproof."

"See, my husband's Owen Carter. He's one of the biggest corporate attorneys in the state" Jillian states, trying to scare Maya and JJ who sit in front of her but instead they wonder why she's even in the Libertad at all since she clearly doesn't need any money.

"You were probably tired of being a bored... useless... dried up housewife and Libertad tapped into your hidden ambition and business skills" Maya states while Jillian forms a smirk on her lips. "My husband's going to have a field day with you..."

_____

Later, Hotch goes to see his NSA buddy, Alina right by his side, and accuses him of being George Washington. The guy has proof he was out of the country when the face/off file was requested, so Hotch asks where the tip about Graff came from.

"Hotch- I couldn't have done th-" The man states before Alina grabs his arm and twist it behind his back before slamming his head on the table in front of him while his guards in the room immediately unholster their weapons.

"Did not ask if you could do it. He asked who done it" Alina states, her grip tightening on the hold of the NSA guy. "Okay, okay!" He caves and Alina swiftly let's go, watching as the guards in the room holster their weapons and get back into position before Hotch's NSA buddy states the person who initially tipped him off about Graff... was his boss.

Alina and Hotch lock eyes before they both leave the building, set out on a mission to find the identity of George Washington.

_____

"Right now, agents are searching your house, confiscating your computer" JJ informs as she circles around the interrogation room, but the women seem unfazed. "Go ahead. They won't find anything. Just means my kids can't do their homework now" Jillian shrugs and Maya scoffs.

"Right... kids. I got to say, you seem like a good mother" Maya compliments while Jillian nods her head, agreeing that she is a great mother.

"You think they'll agree when you're in federal prison?" Maya asks tauntingly while Jillian laughs in her face. "I'm a white woman with no prior record. I serve on 3 charity boards. No jury will ever put me away" Jillian defends as she looks Maya up and down.

"They'd have better luck putting up a G.I. Jane wannabe who is definitely a lot more trouble than a cute southern belle like me" Jillian taunts, her lips twitch in a smirk after the remark she made about Maya.

Maya smiles through the hatred before her hand extends and she grabs Jillian by the hair and slams her face into the metal table. "Maya!" JJ calls out as Maya abruptly stands to her feet and marches across the table and grabs Jillian as she desperately holds her nose.

"Yes, you're a white women in America with a lot of money. But you only have that money because Labertad, without them, you are a dried up whore who is using her husbands name to make her feel like something when she is really nothing" Maya states as she throws the women up against the wall, watching as her body falls to the ground. "How do you think your kids will like you when they see mommy with a bloody nose? Think they'll see you as a good mom then?" Maya taunts as Jillian breathes heavily, sniffling in her tears.

"What about your husband? Owen Carter, right? How will he feel about his wife's double life?" Maya asks and she notices Jillian's eyes grow wide and once Maya and JJ threaten to tell her husband what she's been up to, and she immediately caves and tells them everything she knows without asking for a deal of any kind.

She lets them know that her contact is George Washington and if he had any concerns about someone, he'd tell me to give them specific instructions to meet again.

_____

Derek and Maya go out to the bus stop where victims are sent to be murdered and go looking around. Derek wants to know who owns the store at the end of the line, since that would be a great place to abduct someone from. But Garcia keeps cutting in and out, because they have bad cell reception.

"We're gonna have to spilt up" Maya informs and although Derek is hesitant, he knows they'll be able to cover more ground and the both of them can handle themselves so he agrees and Derek drives up a hill to get a cell signal, while Maya starts knocking on doors so she can be find the killer.

Derek finally gets the call through and talks to Garcia, who reports that the store owner is a creep who loves killing animals.

Meanwhile, as Maya turns the corner, a guy rushes out of nowhere and tackles her to the ground, causing Maya to let two shots ring out of her gun. Maya's body slams through two wooden doors before she lands roughly on her back.

Her gun is not in her hand and she sees the killers legs right at her feet. She swiftly kicks her leg underneath is and watches as body hits the ground. She kicks her feet up and balances herself, now standing up and looking for her gun. As she finds her gun, the killers gets ahold of his taser and before Maya can grab her gun the killer presses the trigger of his taser and points it directly into Maya's leg, causing her fall onto the ground and scream in agony.

"Agh!" Maya calls out as Derek quickly drives up the hill to help her after hearing the loud shots. Not calling for back up, Derek has a foot chase with the unsub, and it ends with him shooting the killer to death and rescuing the missing DEA agent.

_____

Meanwhile, the head of the DEA comes to meet with Hotch, and unexpectedly Alina as well. Hotch accuses him of being the head of the cartel and announces that the pen he's got on him is actually a USB drive that has the connection codes for all of Silk Road.

In the end, Hotch and Alina were right and the police come to take away the boss.

"You did good tonight" Hotch informs as he looks to Alina. "I guess you did too, Hotchner" Alina states in her strong Russian accent before she leaves Hotch alone in the room and follows the cops out as they drag out the head of the DEA as well.

Case Closed.

TWO DAYS LATER

Reid picked up Natalie from her house and even got her a bouquet of flowers which she enjoyed very much. They arrive at the event Reid is supposed to be at and walk in and the room is lit up with multiple chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and classical music playing from a professional band on the stage while people mingle and talk amongst themselves.

"You were invited to something like this?" Natalie asks as she looks to Reid, who locks their arms together and nods. "Sometimes I wonder how smart you really are. I guess this is my answer" Natalie jokes as she looks around the room while Reid keeps his eyes on her, watching as her eyes light up with admiration.

A couple hours later, after Reid and Natalie have gotten their ear talked off by multiple old people, the music still plays and Reid decides it's his time to make a move and offer Natalie a dance, which she accepts with grace.

Once they get in the dance floor, it's like all their worry goes away. Any doubt they had, any fear they had has vanished and it's just the two of them on the large ball room dance floor. Natalie's breath hitches as her hands rest on Reid's shoulders and his rest on his waist and the two of them away side to side, enjoying each others embrace and company.

A smile is formed on both of their lips as the two of them lean closer and closer towards each other, but instead of planting their lips on one another the two hold each other in their arms. Natalie's head resting on his chest and his head resting on her shoulders.

"Thanks for coming" Reid mumbles, "Thanks for inviting me."

"If the whole world was watching, I'd still dance with you. Drive highways and byways to be there with you"
-Niall Horan-

do you guys like Alina? and sorry for the long chapter!!