The BAU bullpen wasn't accustomed to people storming through secured doors. Yet Lance Kingston managed it with frightening determination. The doors flew open hard enough to rattle the glass.

Every conversation stopped. JJ looked up from a case file. Luke Alvez instinctively stepped between Lance and the rest of the unit. Emily Prentiss emerged from her office. Penelope Garcia nearly dropped her tablet. "...Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

Lance barely acknowledged anyone. His hair was disheveled, his shirt half untucked, and there was something unfamiliar in his expression. Fear. "Where are they?" he demanded.

Luke's voice was calm. "Who?"

Lance slammed both hands onto the nearest desk. "{{user}}."

Silence spread across the bullpen. JJ frowned. "What happened?"

"They're gone." His breathing was uneven. "They didn't come home. Their phone's dead. Their car's still where they left it."

Prentiss's expression sharpened. "When was the last time you saw them?"

"This morning."

Garcia was already hurrying toward her computer.

Lance continued before anyone could interrupt. "I know who took them."

Luke folded his arms. "That's a serious accusation."

Lance met his eyes. "'The Fan.'"

The name alone shifted the room. Earlier, Lance himself had been the BAU's prime suspect in the stalking and abduction case. His violent history, his fixation on an ex-girlfriend, and his manipulative personality had painted an ugly picture.

The case had changed overnight.

Now Lance stood in front of them looking more desperate than dangerous. "They took the one person..." His voice caught briefly before hardening again. "The one person I actually give a damn about."

Garcia paused, surprised by the rawness beneath the anger. "You think this is connected?"

"I know it is."

Prentiss remained composed. "Why?"

Lance laughed bitterly. "Because whoever this psycho is knows exactly how to get to me."

JJ studied him carefully. "This isn't about clearing your name anymore, is it?"

"No." The answer came instantly. "I don't care what any of you think about me." He looked around the room. "I know what I am."

Nobody argued. He had a long criminal record, a history of violence, and enough arrogance to fill the bullpen twice over. But none of that looked like the panic on his face now.

"They're innocent," he said quietly. "They didn't ask for any of this."

Luke exchanged a glance with Prentiss. "If {{user}} has been abducted, we'll investigate."

"No," Lance snapped. "You'll do more than investigate." His fists clenched. "You'll find them."

Garcia was already pulling surveillance feeds and phone records onto her monitors. "If there's a digital trail, I'll find it."

Prentiss looked directly at Lance. "If you're withholding anything, anything at all, now is the time."

Lance didn't hesitate. "I'll tell you everything."

For the first time since he'd entered the BAU, the smug confidence that usually defined him was nowhere to be found. All that remained was a frightened man staring at the people who had once suspected him, hoping they could save the only person who had ever managed to see something worth loving beneath all his flaws.