"Sarah Jean and Jacob Dawes butchered, what, twelve girls?" JJ asks. She's sitting with Cassandra in the backseat of an SUV, with Gideon in the passenger seat as Derek drives.

"Thirteen counting the girl that was just found." Gideon tells her, holding up the crime scene photos. They show a skeleton, dead for years. "Hilary Dickson. Disappeared 15 years ago. Buried her under Sarah's mother's living room."

"You think that was their last victim?"

"That's what we're here to find out."

They're in Florida, visiting the Dawes' before their capital punishment is carried out. Cassandra is not looking forward to the interviews: she strongly disapproves of the death penalty. It's immoral, the forms of death are cruel and unusual, and that's not even getting into how many innocent lives have been taken due to injustices in the system. She understands that it makes some people feel safer–they don't want serial killers out in the world–but it freaks her out. And here she is, going to record their last interviews for VICAP.

"Sarah Jean Dawes." Gideon pulls out a picture of the couple, both of them smiling. Sarah Jean is facing the camera while Jacob smiles at her. She has blonde hair, just like all of the victims did, and Cassandra wishes, not for the first time, that JJ and Penelope were staying behind for this one. It's a thought she hasn't vocalized: JJ is tough, and Penelope will be kept far away from the couple, being brought along for research purposes.

Cassandra has never been happier to have brown hair.

"Media called her the Ice Queen." JJ states.

"That's how they interpreted her demeanor during the trial." Gideon says.

"You see different?" Derek asks, looking over for a second before refocusing on the road.

"Nah, I didn't say that."

"She killed her two-year-old son and twelve teenage girls." JJ points out.

"She only confessed to the murder of her son, Riley." Gideon reminds her.

"Well, she hasn't cooperated with any request to interview her."

"I wouldn't either, if I was hated as much as she is." Cassandra points out, shrugging at the look JJ sends her. "Look, I don't agree with her actions. Of course I don't. But her husband has fangirls, and she gets death threats. I agree with imprisoning them, but I don't agree with the death penalty, no matter the crime."

"Oh, here we go." Derek groans, having heard this spiel multiple times since they were handed the case files.

"I'm just saying! Capital punishment doesn't deter violent crime. States with the death penalty have the highest death rates. At least one person is exonerated for every eight that are executed and it's discriminatory. Just look at the Exonerated Five: they were just teenage boys who happened to be in a park that a white woman was beaten and raped in. They did nothing to her, and the DNA on the scene proved that, but the cops had no problem beating them into making a false statement, and then Donald Trump spent $85,000 on full-page newspaper adverts: 'Bring Back the Death Penalty, Bring Back Our Police!' I don't understand how anyone could ever cheer for the death of a human being, let alone a group of teenagers. It's just–"

"We get it." Derek interrupts her with a sigh. "Really, we do. It doesn't change the fact that the states have the right to impose it for certain crimes, and Florida has exercised that right. We're there to get answers from them about their crimes, not to make a case about morals."

"I know." Cassandra sighs, her shoulders slumping. "I just hate this."

"Well, at least you don't have to watch."

When they pull up to the prison gates, the protesting crowd outside grows louder. They have signs and chants, and Derek sighs as he pulls in. Cassandra scans the signs, not surprised to see a lot of them relating to Sarah Jean: Sarah Jean, rot in hell; Screw you Sarah Jean; We love Jacob. There are a handful of religious members with signs about murder being a sin, and then a group of blonde women.

"There it is, the death row circus."

"They call themselves the Women of Jacob." Gideon tells JJ as they drive past the blondes. "Try to look like his victims."

"Creepy." JJ sighs, her lip curling.

"There's only twelve of 'em." Derek points out, doing a quick head count. "Should we tell them they're one short?"

"At least." Gideon sighs. Cassandra shares a grim look with JJ, knowing that there are likely more undiscovered bodies out there.

With 35 hours left until the time of execution, the team gathers in the command center of Florida State Penitentiary.

"In 1985, there was a string of missing girls reported in Northern Florida." Derek states, pacing around the room. "Police subsequently got an anonymous call from a woman claiming to have seen Jacob with some of the girls."

"Did they ever find out who the anonymous woman was?" JJ asks.

"No." Spencer answers quickly.

"Police interviewed Jacob Dawes." Hotch continues. "Also present were Sarah Jean Dawes and their two-year-old son, Riley. Police were suspicious. They came back three hours later with a search warrant only to find that Riley had vanished. They also eventually found the dismembered bodies of twelve missing girls buried in the ground underneath Jacob's workshop."

"Fearing that the police were onto them, Jacob figured Riley would slow them down so he ordered Sarah Jean to kill him and dispose of the body." Spencer explains further, and Cassandra has to look away from the picture they have of Riley, with his innocent face and wide eyes.

"Sarah confessed to killing Riley, but never admitted her role in the deaths of the girls." Gideon states.

"She never denied it, either." Elle points out.

"Well, according to Jacob, Sarah Jean was fully complicit in the targeting, abduction, and murder of all twelve, and, well, now thirteen victims." Derek reminds her.

"Prison records show that Jacob is a sexual psychopath." Spencer says, and Cassandra grimaces. Those records had been horrifying. "They were inconclusive on Sarah Jean, though. They said her demeanor was more like that of a war victim's."

"Who knows what she went through during that marriage." Cassandra points out, shaking her head in dismay. "We know what he did to those women, and what he's done in prison . . . we don't know what he was doing at home."

"And as with all sexual psychopaths, Jacob is obsessed with the idea of the total possession of his victims." Hotch continues profiling. "He's shown no remorse or guilt."

"Jacob saw Sarah Jean as a possession. Somebody to control, to dominate." Gideon says, and Cassandra grimaces, remembering the tattoo Jacob has on his arm. A heart with Sarah Jean written on it: something that some may view as romantic, but was just a form of possession for Jacob. Marking her as his forever, with permanent ink on his own body.

"Just so we're clear, they've agreed to these interviews?"

"Yes, sir."

"Wait. I'm sorry. Who are you, exactly?" Elle questions, turning to the man who'd spoken up from the back of the room.

"I'm Sam Shapiro. I'm their appeals attorney." He introduces, and Cassandra is quick to shake his hand in greeting, introducing herself.

"Not only have they agreed to them, they were initially requested by them." Hotch explains, handing over paperwork for Shapiro to look over.

"I can't get them a stay of execution." Shapiro sighs.

"Garcia, remember 75% of all communication . . ."

"Is non-verbal." Penelope finishes Gideon's thought, turning away from her computers.

"Hotch, interview Jacob. Morgan and Elle–"

"I'm not gonna get anything new, but–"

"Find a new way to ask." Gideon dismisses him. "696 Hennesy Street, Jacob and Sarah Jean's home. It's due for demolition. Take a look around." He passes a file to Derek, who is going there with Elle. "Grey, Reid, you're with me. We're going to interview Sarah Jean."

Cassandra pulls her leather jacket closer to her body as they're led through the prison by the warden. She has a visitors badge tacked to the front pocket and she glances down to make sure that it's still clearly visible as they walk.

"The guards call this Dead Man's Alley." They're told as they're buzzed in, one of the guards holding the door open for them.

"Has she had any contact with Jacob?"

"Until today, she's declined contact with anyone. For her own safety, we keep her away from the other prisoners. The hate for this woman is as fresh today as it was fifteen years ago."

All while her husband has fans who dress up as their victims.

"Open on four!"

The door to Sarah Jean's cell slides open at the instruction, and they stop right outside of it. She's faced away from them, staring at the artwork hanging on her walls. They're beautiful paintings: flowers and rivers and depictions of the world outside of these walls. A world she's been removed from for fifteen years.

"Accomplished work." Gideon tells her.

"I've had plenty of time." Sarah Jean answers. Her voice is raspy, her hair is mussed up and slightly curly. When she turns to greet them, there's a small smile on her face. She has bags under her eyes, evidence of long, sleepless nights. The look in them stops Cassandra in her tracks: she knows guilt when she sees it. "What is it you want to know?"

"I think it's time the mothers of those girls learn why their children had to die. Don't you?"

The smile slips off of her face.

"A doctor and so young." Sarah Jean marvels, twisting to face Spencer as they walk to an interrogation room. Spencer gives her a small smile, looking at the ground sheepishly. "Your mother must be very proud."

"Sarah Jean! Sarah Jean!" Jacob shouts from the other side of the glass, being led to a separate room. Sarah Jean turns to face him after freezing for a long moment, and Jacob stops walking. "You look so fine, baby cakes. This was meant to be! Our names will live forever!"

"Let's go." Hotch orders, and they're quickly buzzed into the next room.

"It's a beautiful thing!"

"Let's go!"

"It's a beautiful thing!"

Sarah Jean turns to face Gideon as soon as Jacob is away from her, taking slow steps forward until she is directly in front of him. "You designed that to happen. Did you learn anything, Agent?"

"So, what did you see in Jacob?" Gideon asks Sarah Jean after they sit down. He's directly across from Sarah Jean, with Spencer next to him. Cassandra is in the seat next to Sarah Jean, ignoring the frustrated looks the guards give her at her position.

"Freedom."

"Freedom from what?" Spencer asks her softly, looking concerned.

Before she can answer–if she was going to–Gideon stands up, turning away from them. Elle's voice fills all three of their ears through their earpieces, and Cassandra catches the way Sarah Jean focuses on Spencer as he adjusts his, knowing that they're on a call.

"We're at the mother's house." Elle tells them, referring to Sarah's Jean mother. "She gave me a letter I want to read to you."

"Read the letter, Elle." Gideon tells her, moving so that he's standing over the table, looking directly at Sarah Jean. As Elle reads it, Gideon starts speaking it out loud, all of them watching for Sarah Jean's reaction.

"'Mom, I know how difficult this must be.'" She turns her head to him, a furrow forming between her eyebrows. "'Things between us were never what they should be, between a mother and a daughter.'"

"That is a private letter." Sarah Jean stands up, tears forming in her eyes.

"'I want you to know that the best part of me, the most important part of me, is now in a better place than you or I will ever be.'" Gideon continues, and Sarah Jean snarls, yanking his earpiece out.

"Stop it!"

"'I am responsible for the deaths of those girls by neglecting my duties as a woman and a mother.'" Spencer continues what Gideon had started, and Cassandra is the one to stop Sarah Jean from leaping across the table at him. He pulls back from them quickly, while Gideon stands in front of him and Cassandra keeps Sarah Jean's hands pulled behind her back.

"You're okay." She promises, gently lowering her to her seat. She waves off the security guard who keeps trying to separate them, frowning as Sarah Jean starts crying, bowing her head. "Can we get her some water?"

"You neglected your duty?" Gideon asks while a guard puts in her request. "That doesn't make you responsible. You didn't kill those girls. Why didn't you say this in court?"

"I knew he brought women back to his workshop." Sarah Jean whispers, her words catching as she cries.

"That's a long way from knowing he was killing them." Spencer tells her softly.

"They died as a result of my neglect."

Cassandra moves away from her, grabbing a bottle of water through the bars as a guard hands it over. She uncaps it and crouches next to Sarah Jean, handing it over and watching as she drinks it, sharing a saddened look with Spencer. Fifteen years being blamed for something she didn't do–blaming herself for not seeing her husband for who he was and what he was doing.

"This letter suggests to me . . ." Gideon sighs, watching as Cassandra uses her sleeve to wipe away the woman's tears. "That an innocent woman is about to be executed for a crime she did not commit."

With 24 hours remaining, the three of them gather around Penelope, who is playing the tape back. Shapiro is with them, his arms crossed as he watches, standing next to Warden Diehl.

"They died as a result of my neglect." The recording of Sarah Jean repeats, and Cassandra sighs as she runs her hands through her hair.

"I can tell you right now, it's not enough to get a stay." Shapiro tells them.

"You want facts. Reid?"

"Human sexuality is a complex dynamic of three components. Biological, physiological, and emotional. Jacob's needs were formed by the emotional and sexual abuse that he received at the hand of his mother."

"Long term repetitive abuse formed the template of his love map." Gideon adds. "Something we refer to as a signature. Jacob was an only child . . ."

"Thus he was alone when the abuse occured." Spencer continues. "So in order for him to fulfill his fantasy, he has got to be alone with his victims."

Penelope presses play on the recording of Hotch and Jacob, catching Jacob talking: "If I told you that, what would I have left for myself?"

"He said myself." Gideon points out. "If Sarah Jean was present, it would've destroyed his fantasy."

"She confessed to killing her son." Diehl points out.

"Yes, true. But we're also convinced that she was the anonymous caller that made the phone call that nailed Jacob." Spencer explains.

"Since 1973, 200 former death-row prisoners have been exonerated of their wrongful convictions." Cassandra tells Diehl. "30 of those have occurred in Florida. She never confessed to the murders of those women. She knew that he was bringing women into his workshop, but she likely assumed that he was having an affair, not murdering them–until she saw them on the news."

"Guilt-ridden. Filled with remorse, she called the police." Gideon continues the thought. "That's not the profile of a woman who would then kill her child."

"What else do you need?" Spencer asks them.

"Evidence."

"If we prove Jacob killed Riley, will that get a stay?" Gideon asks.

"Absolutely."

"She protects the painting, she protects the boy." Gideon murmurs, turning to the screen that shows a live recording of Sarah Jean in her cell. She's moving one of the paintings on the wall, slowly sitting down with it cradled in her lap.

"What?" Shapiro asks.

"The paintings are a statement. We need to figure out what they say."

While Gideon goes to talk to Sarah Jean again, bringing the paintings with him, Cassandra stays in the command center. She's sitting next to Penelope, waiting for JJ to join Hotch in interrogating Jacob: JJ's idea, deciding that being blonde could help get information out of him. She does match the description of his victims.

"Oh, I know, I know." Jacob tells Hotch as he stands above his table. He has a cigarette in his mouth, one that a guard had lit for him, no one stupid enough to provide the man with a lighter. "One day these are gonna kill me. Come on, Hotch! That was funny!"

Hotch's face remains impassive as the doors on the opposite side open, JJ being allowed through.

"And who are you?" Jacob marvels.

"My friend's call me JJ."

"Well, hel–" Jacob stands up, interrupted immediately by Hotch.

"Sit down." He orders, and Jacob turns away from JJ for the first time, giving Hotch an annoyed look. "Sit down."

Jacob slowly does so, turning back to JJ with excitement.

"Hello . . . JJ."

Cassandra hates the way he says her name, savoring it, drawing it out: JayJay.

"You're not my friend." JJ says with a smirk. "You can call me Jennifer."

"Ouch." Jacob pretends to flinch, giving her a flirty look over as she finally sits down across from him. Hotch joins her instantly, sitting next to her, but Jacob's gaze never wavers. Neither does JJ's.

"That was a nice touch, bringing in the hottie." Jacob chuckles. "You really want to know if there was others, don't you? I'll tell you what. Draw poker. You win, I'll give you another girl."

"So there are more."

"Do we have a bet?"

"What if you win?"

Jacob takes a long drag of his cigarette, drawing the moment out.

"I get to smell Jennifer's hair."

"No."

"Oh, come on. All she has to do is lean over and I get to smell her hair."

"No."

"I thought you wanted answers."

"Go to hell."

"It's okay, Hotch." JJ tells him calmly, and Jacob smiles.

"You see that? It's okay, Hotch. Come on." He starts dealing cards, but Hotch reaches over and steals them from him before he can throw more than one down.

"JJ deals." He says firmly, setting them on the table in front of her. "You think I'd let you deal from your own deck?"

"Please tell me they learned something from Spence." Cassandra breathes out, holding her breath as she watches JJ shuffle the cards and deal them out to the men. She knows JJ can handle herself–and that Hotch won't let anything happen to her–but it still feels way too risky. And here she is, just watching in another room.

"You know how long it's been since I've actually played with someone?" Jacob asks them, looking at his cards. "All I've had is solitaire. Cards?"

"Two." Hotch sets them down, getting them swapped out by JJ.

"I think I'll play these." Jacob tells JJ, who gives him a firm nod with narrowed eyes. "What have you got?"

"I got aces and 8s. Two pair." Hotch answers immediately, laying the four cards out on the table while Cassandra's eyes narrow. Didn't he have five?

"The dead man's hand." Jacob laughs. "I should've had that. But then, of course, I would've lost. Straight to the jack." He lays out his cards, 7 through to jack. "And unless the rules of poker have changed since I've been in here, you lose."

"Oh, sorry." Hotch shifts his cards, revealing the card underneath: an ace. "Full house. Aces over 8s."

"Man!" Jacob shouts, throwing his arms up. "It would've been so nice. But the answer to your question . . . there are no other bodies."

JJ and Hotch stand, moving to leave the room, as Hotch presses a finger to his earpiece and pretends to receive a call. "JJ." He calls her back. "Huh . . . the governor's just granted a stay of execution to Sarah Jean."

"What?" Jacob protests instantly, jumping out of his chair. "They can't do that!"

"They don't believe she killed your son." Hotch tells him as they reach the doorway.

"She killed him! I can tell you exactly where he's buried!"

As soon as JJ and Hotch step into the command center, Cassandra pulls her into her arms. JJ sinks into her, despite being taller than Cassandra by three inches.

"Jennifer Jareau, you are a genius." She gushes as she pulls away, holding her by her arms. "Like, I'm actually a little bit in love with you. Morgan and Elle are looking into the location you got us now."

"Great." She gives Cassandra a warm smile, looking relieved to be out of the room. "What about Sarah Jean? Are you getting anywhere with her?"

"Gideon's in there now. Hopefully we can get her to talk in the next few hours before . . ."

Before she's executed and the truth dies with her.

With eight hours left, they get an ID on the body Derek and Elle found.

A picture of a blonde woman pops up on Penelope's computer. "It's not Riley Dawes. It's Ashley Farley. She was fourteen when she was killed."

"Why would Jacob give us another victim?" Spencer asks, while Cassandra stares at the picture of Ashley, with her warm smile and innocent expression. "It–it completely goes against his need for power, manipulation, and control."

"Taking the secret of an old victim to his grave satisfies that need."

"Why give it up if he wants the pay off?" Spencer frowns.

"Sarah Jean's the pay off. Sarah Jean will be his last victim. That would be the ultimate control."

"Gideon, check this out." Penelope interrupts. "Guess who used to be the Farley's house cleaner?"

Gideon rushes off to talk to Sarah Jean, while Cassandra sighs and slips into an empty chair.

"At least Ashley's family can get some closure." She says softly, although she knows that this news will break them. At least they'll know what happened to her, even if the answer is horrible. No more wondering if she's still alive, if she'll come home some day, if they'll see her again.

When they're down to five hours, Gideon enters the room where Spencer, Cassandra, JJ and Penelope are gathered together.

"Garcia, pull up the interview with Sarah Jean." He orders.

"What is it?" Spencer asks, all of them gathering around Penelope as she types away, pulling up the feed.

"Exodus 2:3."

"Moses."

"Hebrew sons were supposed to be drowned. Moses' mother sent him down the Nile in a basket."

"Where's he buried?" Gideon's voice comes from the computer, sitting across from Sarah Jean.

"All that matters is that he's safe." Sarah Jean answers.

"Where is he?"

"He's in a better place."

"Jacob didn't bury Riley anywhere because Sarah Jean had already taken care of him."

"Then, she did kill him." JJ states, coming to the opposite conclusion as the rest of them.

"No. She–she sent him somewhere where she believed he'd be safe." Spencer explains.

"He's alive." Penelope gasps, quickly turning back to her computers to try and figure out anything she can. A picture of the two-year-old–the last known picture of Riley Dawes–comes up on her screen, and Cassandra finally feels hope instead of dread at the sight of it.

"We're running out of time." Gideon states. "This is the proof we need to save Sarah Jean."

"Check all police and hospital records dating back to September 1990." Gideon suggests three hours later.

"You know, you should check local newspapers too, to see if anyone reported any missing babies." Spencer adds.

"People often leave them in firestations or hospitals." Cassandra states, racking her mind for anything that could help them.

"She really only had a maximum of three hours between police visits." Spencer points out. "It was 4pm, so traffic was pretty heavy. Whatever she did with Riley, it had to be local."

"1990. Three babies were abandoned in September." Penelope reports.

"Two-year-old boys?"

"Nada." Penelope slumps in her chair, her face falling with disappointment, and Cassandra squeezes her shoulder in comfort.

"Why doesn't she just tell us where Riley is?" Spencer asks.

"She'll protect him for as long as Jacob is alive."

"Look, they're being executed within an hour of each other." JJ points out, her voice rising with her frustration. Jacob is in that process as they speak. "What hope do we even have of finding him in time?"

"You know, it's quite possible she doesn't even know where he is, anyway." Spencer points out, but Gideon shakes his head.

"No. She'd know. We got to get into her cell."

Gideon convinces Diehl to allow him access, and Cassandra joins him in bringing Sarah Jean outside. Apparently she'd requested to see the Full Moon before she's killed, and the warden allows the view as a distraction–and as a kindness.

She sighs with a huge smile on her face as Diehl walks on one side of her, Cassandra on the other. "I thought it was against regulations." She breathes out, and Diehl smiles.

"Well, don't tell anybody."

"It's cold." She says next, sounding amazed.

"You need a jacket. Vincent, give me your jacket."

The guard moves to pull his off, but Sarah Jean holds up her hand, halting his actions.

"Oh, I'm fine, really. It makes me feel, you know . . . alive."

She walks backward until she gets an unblocked view of the moon, a smile on her face as she keeps her head tilted back.

"Do you like the moon?" She asks suddenly, and Cassandra blinks.

"Um, sure. I've always been more of a star person myself." She admits. There's something about Sarah Jean that keeps her talking. "My sister and I used to stargaze whenever we could. We'd sneak onto the roof, or fall asleep in the backyard. We–well, it's a bit dumb."

"I'm sure it's not." Sarah Jean says comfortingly, still not looking away from the moon.

"We used to say that if we were ever split up, we'd still be together, 'cause we'd be under the same stars. We named a few of them." She chokes out. It was how they got through their first separate sleepovers as children, when they'd been attached at the hip and terrified of being apart. Cassandra would do anything to go back to those years. They used to think that it would kill them to be apart for too long because they were twins.

In a way, they were right.

"I told my son about the moon." She breathes out, giving Cassandra a long look. After a second, she looks saddened. "I'm sorry about your sister."

"Thank you." Cassandra nods, not wanting to ask what gave her away. Sarah Jean nods, turning to Diehl.

"How are your sons, Warden?"

"Good." He answers, and she smiles softly.

"Good."

"Uh, Darren just graduated."

"Yeah? You ever tell him about the man in the moon?" She asks curiously. Diehl slowly nods his head.

"Sure."

"I used to tell Riley that no matter where we were, the man in the moon would be looking down on both of us." She breathes out, looking back up at the moon.

"I don't understand." Cassandra admits, wrapping her arms around herself. "We want to help you. You don't–you don't deserve to be killed for another person's actions, even if you think you do. Don't you want to be reunited with Riley? You just have to tell us where you sent him and–"

"Do you believe in choices?"

"Yes." Cassandra answers slowly, meeting Sarah Jean's eyes. She looks determined, and Cassandra worries that they won't be able to break through to her.

"Well, this is mine. I'm happy with it." She says softly, and the truth of that is obvious in every line of her face. "Riley is in a better place. Soon, so will I."

"You really want this?" Cassandra breathes out, swallowing thickly.

"I really do." She answers calmly, truthfully.

"We should get back." Diehl states reluctantly, looking at his watch. "Sarah . . . if there's something you know that can save you . . ."

"Thank you, Warden." Sarah Jean says, a smile forming on her face. "This has been wonderful. Your kindness to me. I thank you."

She leads the way back into the penitentiary, leaving Diehl and Cassandra behind to ruminate on her decision.

"This is very kind of you." Sarah Jean says an hour later, while Cassandra carefully cuts her hair. She'd requested to be the one to do it before her execution, even though it feels like abandoning all of her morals. "I know it's making you uncomfortable."

"I–I don't like the concept of capital punishment." Cassandra admits after a long moment of silence. "I hate it, really."

"And yet you're helping prep me." She says, and Cassandra has no answer to that. It comes down to respect, she thinks: even though Sarah Jean's dying wish goes against everything she stands for, it's her dying wish. She had a lifetime of no control over her life, with an abusive father and an abusive husband, and then she'd spent fifteen years in prison for crimes she didn't commit. If this is how she reclaims her control, who is Cassandra to stop her?

"I've never been able to draw water as well as you do." She softly changes the subject, referring to the woman's paintings. "It always looks and feels stagnant. Yours moves. It's beautiful."

"You should keep it." She says gently, not looking up at the painting she's referring to. She's been stroking the one in her lap, the one with a little boy running through a field, a clear depiction of Riley. "I'd like you to."

Cassandra opens her mouth to protest, but quickly shuts it. She's not sure she will even be allowed to: it may be considered evidence and thrown in a box somewhere, but the thought of that pains her.

"I would love that. Thank you." She says thickly, clearing her throat to rid her voice of tears. "That's very kind of you."

"Are you ready, Sarah Jean!" Jacob's voice echoes through the halls. He's on his way to being executed. "We're gonna ride the lightning, baby!"

She flips the painting around, freezing when she notices the absence of a photograph. Gideon had found it: a photo of a boy playing the cello. Riley, grown up.

Cassandra sits with Sarah Jean after she's done shaving all of her hair off. The paintings have been placed on the wall, aside from the one of the river, which Sarah Jean had calmly placed in Cassandra's lap. They haven't spoken; what is there to say?

When Gideon enters the room, he hands Sarah Jean the photo he'd found.

"Riley. Tell me where he is. We can stop this madness." He urges, and tears form in Sarah Jean's eyes as she runs her hand over the photograph of her son.

"There's no greater gift in life than that of being a parent." She says softly, looking up at Gideon. "Yet so many of us abuse and squander that gift."

"You can change that right now."

"I made my decision fifteen years ago. Dr. Grey respects that. Can't you?"

Cassandra nods when Gideon looks at her. "Gideon, just try and listen. Hear her out."

"This has never been about Jacob." Sarah Jean states. "It's always been about Riley."

"That's why I can't let you do this."

"This isn't about you or me."

"That's why I'm not gonna let Riley lose the greatest gift he never knew he had." Gideon says firmly, turning and leaving the cell.

"But that is my gift to him." Sarah Jean stands up. "And I'll not let you destroy that!"

With one last look at Sarah Jean, Cassandra runs after Gideon, who doesn't stop when she calls for him. When she catches up to him, he looks frustrated with her.

"Since when are you pro-death penalty?" He snarls at her.

"I'm not. I'm pro-choice." Cassandra defends, keeping pace with him. "Gideon, nothing I've said has changed her mind. Trust me, I've tried. She knows what she wants and–and I don't think we have the right to take that from her. She's in control of her own life for the first time, don't you get that?"

"We have a responsibility to discover the truth." Is all he says, ignoring her protests as they enter the command center.

"All the people Jacob allowed Sarah Jean to know were the families she cleaned for." He tells Penelope, moving further into the room. Cassandra sets the painting down on a chair in the corner, her heart clenching at the sight of it.

"Sarah Jean worked for wealthy families, all of whom lived in Hampton." Hotch continues. "Let's go over all the families in the state of Florida who were looking to adopt in 1990. Let's see how many lived in Hampton."

"Families looking to adopt? Hundreds."

"How many in Hampton?"

"Uh, three families. The James', the Kopple's, and the Sheffield's." She tells them.

"Looks like the Sheffield's removed themselves from the list in October 1990 and then moved out of Hampton." JJ reads, and Cassandra shuts her eyes. That's got to be him.

"That's one month after Riley vanished. Where'd they go?"

"Uh, Keystone Heights. We got a match on the photo! It was in the local daily news."

"Call Morgan and Elle! Tell them to get to the Sheffield house." Hotch orders, while Cassandra moves after him and Gideon.

"Gideon, come on. What is this going to do?" She pleads, and Hotch turns to her with a frown.

"What's going on?"

"Sarah Jean doesn't want us to disrupt Riley's life." She continues, shaking her head. "She wants him to live the way he has been, in peace, thinking that his name is Byron Sheffield. Knowing who his parents are won't do anything but hurt him and she–this is her dying wish."

"It doesn't have to be." Gideon snaps. "She doesn't have to die. You don't get to make these decisions!"

"And you do?" She shoots back, narrowing her eyes.

"We found him, Warden Diehl." Gideon announces, coming to a stop right outside of her cell. "We found her son."

"Unless I receive an official stay of execution from the governor, I am duty bound to see this through." Diehl tells him, sounding reluctant.

"My son is dead, Agent Gideon." Sarah Jean tells him as she walks forward. She's been granted her choice of clothes, and is now wearing a white button-up shirt and black slacks.

"I have agents on the way to his house as we speak, and the governor standing by."

"Why can you not accept the truth?"

"I can. This isn't it." Gideon answers. "My agents are within minutes of finding her son alive."

"I am truly sorry." Diehl tells him. "Hold here." He enters the execution room while Sarah Jean walks forward, stopping directly in front of Gideon.

"What wouldn't you do for your son to give him a life you could never hope to dream of?" She asks. "I am at peace in the knowledge . . . that my son is free to be whatever he chooses to be."

"If he knew who you were . . ." Gideon protests, "do you think he'd choose to allow you to walk in there?"

"If he knew who his parents were . . . can you imagine the damage my legacy would leave him?"

"Can you imagine what he would feel . . . knowing his mother spent fifteen years on death row . . . innocent of all charges . . . just so he could be free of her?" Gideon questions back, as a few tears slide down Sarah Jean's face.

"Not me. Jacob." She answers simply. "It isn't just my life you have in your hands, it's Riley's life, too. You have the chance to save my son's life."

"I choose to save yours, too." Gideon insists.

"My life ended the day I met Jacob."

"It's time." Warden Diehl speaks up from behind Sarah Jean, exiting the room just as Elle and Derek arrive at Riley's house. Elle's voice echoes in their earpieces, telling them that the family isn't home.

"Take your hands off her." Gideon orders the guards. "Tell Morgan to kick the door down if he has to."

"Agent Gideon."

"A few moments, please."

"Hey, Hotch. We got him. He's here." Elle tells them. "What do we do?"

"Gideon, they've got him. What are we doing here?"

"I am standing here because of choices I have made." Sarah Jean tells them. "Don't let my son be Jacob's last victim. Let me go. Let us both go."

Gideon slowly steps forward and pulls her into a hug. When he releases her, he's come to the same conclusion that Cassandra had all those hours ago.

"Tell Morgan . . . it's not her son." He says softly. Relief lights up Sarah Jean's blue eyes and brings a smile to her face. "We made a mistake."

She stops once before she's led into the execution room, and it's to turn to Gideon and Cassandra: "Would it be too much to ask if yours are the last faces I see?"

She gets her wish.

"Are you alright?" Derek's voice makes her jump slightly, turning from her spot on the couch to see Spencer and him frowning at her from their spots opposite of her. They have an abandoned game of cards—Uno—on the table in front of them, and the blinds pulled down. "I know this case . . . I know you weren't happy about it. I'm sure this isn't the ending you hoped for."

"It's the ending she hoped for." Cassandra answers softly, her hand stilling on the painting cradled in her lap. She's mesmerized by the talent of it, and heartbroken that said talent is no longer in the world, and relieved that she helped carry out her dying wish. "I'm okay. Just . . . learning a lot about myself, I guess."

"Learning isn't a bad thing." Spencer points out, and Cassandra's lips quirk up.

"No, it isn't." She agrees, clearing her throat. "Alright, move over. New game."

She carefully sets the painting on the couch and takes Derek's spot after he shifts over for her, scooping up the cards and shuffling them. The plane is quickly filled with their arguments and complaints, especially since she teams up with Derek against Spencer, stacking their +4's and starting a fight about game rules and house rules. They win, and he pouts as he adds more cards to his hand while Derek and Cassandra celebrate.

(Naturally, they still somehow lose.)

"Hey." She speaks up as Derek is shuffling for the next round. "I don't know if you like fish but Derek and I—not you, my brother—caught a ton. Okay, he caught a ton. If you want to come over, the offer's on the table. For all of you."

"I don't have to cook?" Derek perks up. "Hell yeah, I'm in."

"Agreed." JJ gives her a smile, as does Elle, while Hotch tilts his head, hesitating.

"Haley and Jack are invited too, obviously." She tacks on. "And Penelope."

"I'll ask her." Hotch pulls out his phone, and Cassandra turns to Spencer, who looks unsure. Cassandra just gives him a warm smile and watches him give in.

"Okay." He says, and after a moment of hesitation, "Will Dr. Shepherd be there?"

Ah. Cassandra smirks as she nods, holding in her laughter.

"Yep. He's still living with me." She answers, watching him try to be cool about that information before she takes pity on him. "You can ask him any medical questions you want. He loves talking about his own brilliance, don't worry. Oh, and, Spence? We can stop to get something you'll eat on the way."

"Thank you." He responds, both sheepish and grateful, proving that she understood his hesitation correctly. "Um, what time?"

"Whenever." She answers easily, shrugging until she sees that her answer gives him anxiety, and she makes herself go into further detail. "Derek and I aren't the fancy type, so it'll be pretty laid back. If you want, you can catch a ride back with me when we get to the office? That way we can grab food for you and you have more time to talk to him."

When he immediately agrees, she grins to herself and texts Derek and Penelope, giving him a heads up and inviting her. Derek responds with allergy requests and Penelope excitedly accepts the invitation.

"Haley's in." Hotch speaks up, a small smile on his face as he looks away from his phone. "She's excited to get out of the house. Do you want us to bring anything?"

"Just your amazing company." She answers cheerfully, her excitement growing. She's always loved hosting, although she hasn't made the effort to do so since she left Seattle. This feels right.

They pick up a mixture of Chinese and Indian food on the way to her place, since she wants people to have a spread of food to choose from. She refuses Spencer's offer to pay, insisting that he shouldn't feel bad: she's hosting, and she isn't going to make anyone eat anything they don't like.

Then she gets to listen to Spencer and Derek gush about neurosurgery for an hour before the others start arriving. Haley looks gorgeous as always, and Cassandra makes sure to gush over her before focusing on Jack, knowing that people tend to ignore mothers in favor of the babies they pop out. Jack gets set in his baby swing in the corner and promptly falls asleep. Hotch ignores her request not to bring anything, and he instantly makes friends with her brother at the grill outside, having brought a plate of vegetables to grill.

"He's such a dad." Cassandra laughs, sharing an amused smile with Haley before she moves to open the door again, finding Morgan, Elle and Penelope on the other side.

She pulls out a variety of games from the closet, and they engage in a brutal game of Clue that Haley wins. She cackles as she accepts a plastic crown from Cassandra, who bows as she places it on her head, and makes fun of them for losing to a regular civilian. Morgan insists that it was rigged and that he wants a rematch, before he gives in when faced with Haley's glare.

The dinner is casual, just like Cassandra had said: they gather around the living room, sitting on the floor and the couch. They give Haley, Hotch and Gideon the couch, and Cassandra ends up sitting in between Derek and Spencer, grinning as she listens to everyone talk over each other. It's nice seeing how well Derek fits in with her team, and she just wishes Meredith was here as well.

"Do you have a favorite procedure that you've performed?" Spencer asks, and Cassandra smiles instantly, because she knows the answer to that. It's drawn on his and Meredith's bedroom wall, after all.

When Derek turns to look at her, she knows it's his way of asking for permission to tell the story. He knows that—aside from Morgan—none of the members of the team know about Lexie, or anything about Seattle, really. She nods, trusting him to not give away her secrets, and he squeezes her shoulder before speaking. He catches the entire room's attention with his question.

"Did Cassie tell you I tried to get her in neuro?"

"No." Spencer answers, his eyes widening.

"She hasn't really talked about being a surgeon, unless it helps a case." Elle points out, and Cassandra shrugs.

"Well, our hospital had a radiology tech named Isaac." Derek starts, and Cassandra settles in, a smile on her face as she watches her team closely listen to his every word. "He brought me this tumor: beautiful, the most beautiful tumor I've ever seen, but inoperable. A hemangioblastoma, a tumor on the spinal cord that had worked its way up the spine and taken over the blood supply. Somehow, the patient still had leg function when he should've been paralyzed or dead. The only option was to cut the cord, which would paralyze the patient. I tell all of this to Isaac, who then proceeds to tell me that they're his scans."

The room gasps, and Haley and Hotch both lean forward.

"This is his favorite?" She hears Morgan whisper to Elle, and she has to fight her laughter back, not wanting to give anything away.

"He'd gotten his job at Seattle Grace for the sole purpose of meeting Derek." Cassandra brags, proud of her brother, who nudges her shoulder. "Anyway, word spreads fast in the hospital, and we were all devastated about Isaac."

"The Chief told me that I couldn't operate, so naturally, I scheduled it." Derek smirks. "I called all the residents into a learning lab and gave them a dollar bill, a cup with a hole in the bottom, and a microscope. I needed a natural at microsurgery. Their job was to guide a pen through the hole and make a mark on the president's nose without hitting the cup. A few of them didn't get the pen inside—one of them knocked the entire cup over—until finally Cassie and Avery were the closest. They got to scrub in."

"I still have that dollar." Cassandra states with a smile. "I framed it, actually."

"Of course you did." Derek snorts. "You also wore a diaper."

"I'm sorry, what?" JJ bursts out laughing, but Cassandra gives her a proud smile, not embarrassed about it.

"It was Lexie's idea." Derek grins, pushing his shoulder into hers as a show of comfort. "I made her my doctor, since she'd brought up a similar surgery that had taken 17 hours and required forced breaks."

"How did that surgery go?"

"The patient died." Cassandra answers with a sigh, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry, can we go back to the diaper part?" Morgan insists, smirking. "I want to hear all about this."

"It was a long surgery and I didn't want to leave to have to take bathroom breaks. It meant I got to stay hydrated and stay in the room. Lexie and I wore those diapers with pride." She brags, although she'd been the only one to pee in it. Lexie had taken bathroom breaks, unable to bear peeing herself. Cassandra had been more determined to learn everything she could and had endured Jackson Avery teasing her about it.

"So, I got in there and—"

"Stared for ten hours." Cassandra deadpans.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. I couldn't figure out where to cut. The vessels were more intricate than the MRI had shown, and I wasn't sure how to get the tumor out without rupturing one or cutting the cord. Death or paralyzation. Isaac told me before he went under that he trusted me, and that if I had to cut the cord, to do so . . . but he still had leg function. I didn't want to do that."

"So he did nothing." Cassandra says, seeing the disappointment on her team's faces. "He talked to himself for ten hours before Chief Webber found out about the surgery and told him to close him up. He didn't cut the cord."

"I went home and Meredith wanted to know every detail." He laughs, and Cassandra smiles to herself.

"Surgery junkie."

"Surgery junkie." He agrees, a fond smile on his face. "I drew the tumor on our bedroom wall, and she made me realize that I didn't cut the cord for a reason. I went to the Chief the next day and told him that I needed to cut the cord, even though I had no intention of doing so. I had to go back in, pick a point, and cut without a plan."

"The attending's covered for us and guarded the door." Cassandra tells them. "It was amazing. Eight hours in, he got so anxious after he thought he'd cut the cord, he threw up."

"Is this payback for the diaper thing?" Derek scoffs, glaring at her playfully. "Fine. Yes, I puked. I thought I'd paralyzed my friend!"

"Did that hurt the surgery?" Spencer asks, wrinkling his nose. "I mean, O.R's are supposed to be sterile."

"No." Cassandra answers, giving him a kind smile. "He'd turned away from the table and thrown up on the floor like a drama queen. We were able to re-sterilize the area, and I made him scrub back in twice to be sure he was clean. It didn't affect Isaac."

"At the end, I had to do a blind cut. Honestly, I thought I was going to be sick again."

"He tried getting us to tell him which one to cut." Cassandra scoffs, shaking her head. "Like I wanted that hanging over my head for the rest of my life. And then he started playing eenie, meeny, miny, moe."

"Yeah, that was a bit ridiculous." Derek admits with a laugh. "I ended up just stopping and picking which one felt right. And I got it right. I took out the tumor without paralyzing him."

"It took 26 hours." Cassandra remembers. She'd been dead on her feet, and she'd gotten her schedule rearranged, sleeping for an entire day after. She remembers Meredith bullying her and Derek into bed, and waking them up to eat a few times. "And yes, I peed in the diaper, Morgan."

"I'm never letting that go." He smirks, but shakes his head. "Man, I see why the POTUS offered you a job, if that's the kind of miracle you pull off."

After a lot of follow up questions and congratulations, conversations split up again. Cassandra just observes everyone until Derek gets her attention, whispering to her.

"You know . . . if you ever want to come back, there's always a spot for you."

The thought is nice, and for just a moment she considers it: being back in an emergency room, the adrenaline rush every time she's bringing a patient into the operating room, the way everything stops when she makes that first cut. She misses it, but it isn't who she is anymore. She's making her peace with that.

"I know." She says softly, watching JJ throw fruit at Morgan after he says something stupid, the both of them laughing. "I'm meant to be here."

Derek looks proud when she turns her head, and that solidifies her decision. This is where she belongs. After everyone leaves, she hangs the painting in the living room, and grabs a blanket. She falls asleep in her backyard, staring up at the stars, feeling more peaceful than she has in years.

authors note
the case they talk about at the end is season 6, episode 7 of greys anatomy, and it's one of my favorite episodes. i hope the two derek's isn't confusing?! when they're together derek becomes "morgan" bc she isn't about to call her brother by his last name. hopefully that was clear but lmk if it wasn't and ill change it :)

btw there's a documentary on the Exonerated Five on netflix, called when they see us. it's a heartbreaking watch but a must watch considering that it's based on a true story. trump did in fact spend thousands of dollars to call for the murders of black and hispanic teenagers—youngest 14; oldest 16– who were completely innocent. after they were found innocent, after years of being wrongfully incarcerated, he doubled down and spread more racist rhetoric. so just a note that if any of you are America and voted for him, you're not welcome here and i hope you rot in hell <3 genuinely i have no sympathy for any member of his cult. i'm sickened by the fact we have to endure his presidency for another four years. please, please, PLEASE do research, create communities, and protect yourselves and your neighbors when possible. learn your rights and help people learn theirs. be careful what you post online or say to others. i'm seeing a lot of "i'm worried for my neighbor/coworker/etc" posted online, and while it's well-meaning,  DONT do that. you might as well just give them their address at that point. 

we will get through this. we will.

love you all <3