Elle had been surprised to watch JJ take Emily to the airport, and she had called her contact to make certain that she was correct in thinking that the woman had decided to leave for good, that she wouldn't further complicate matters for Elle. He had been quick to agree with her, sending the paperwork that confirmed her new position with Interpol. It was only May, and the BAU was already down a member, without her having to really lift a finger.

Surprisingly, Strauss had proven to be the easiest part of the team to follow, as she had a definite routine. Though Elle had been surprised to note that every Wednesday she attended an AA meeting. That was something she had never thought of the woman, seeing as how she had always been cool and in control whenever Elle had dealt with her.

From her mole, she was able to find out where the team's next assignment was, and she hopped a flight to Zanesville, Ohio, arriving just after the team did. It wasn't hard to track their movements, given that she was being fed with information that told her where the team was staying for the evenings, and from there was able to follow them on their investigation, taking care to always stay in the background, to wear different wigs and glasses and clothes so that if any of them did catch on to the fact that they were being observed, they wouldn't be able to describe her with any certainty. Elle even went so far as to apply beauty marks and birthmarks with makeup.

The dynamic between the remaining five team members was different than the dynamic she had had during her time with Alpha, and she wondered how much of that was due to the fact that Hotch seemed to have relaxed a little of his heavy-handed stranglehold on them. She ascribed a portion of that to the fact that his best friend had rejoined the team once again.

"Over here, Hotch!"

The sound of Reid's voice, so close to her position, startled Elle, and she stiffened and tried to make herself as inconspicuous as possible as they came closer to her table in outdoor café. Raising her cup to her lips, Elle took a long drag as she tracked them with her eyes, taking in the way they worked together and she found herself envious of the easy rapport they seemed to have formed in her absence. Reid had been the only one, really, who had understood her. It wasn't fair that Hotch was now so close to him.

Unable to stop herself, she let out a snort of disbelief. It was louder than she had thought, and Reid's head shot up as he glanced in her direction. A quick frown turned down his lips, and she steeled herself to keep from reacting to his scrutiny, instead setting down her mug and picking up her tablet, scrolling through the news without really reading anything on the screen.

Once he seemed satisfied that he had merely thought he heard something, Reid turned back to Hotch, falling back into the conversation she had interrupted. Knowing that she couldn't stay there any longer, Elle finished off her coffee and then got up from the table and deliberately passed by them. Once again, Reid glanced up at her, but she kept walking, knowing that if she hesitated now, she would risk being caught out, and that was not part of her plan.

Still, she couldn't help but nod at Rossi as she brushed past him, enjoying the inquisitive look he gave her. They had never met, and as far as she knew, no pictures of her time with the BAU existed where he could have found them. The rush of playing with fire surged through her, and Elle allowed a pleased smirk to spread across her lips as she walked towards her rental car and got behind the wheel.

Still, Elle made certain to pull out into traffic slowly, knowing that she still had to keep from gaining their attention. Hotch, she knew, would never forget a face, his memory was even better than Reid's, in some things, and she couldn't afford to have her plans disrupted this early in the game. Once she was back at her hotel room, she let go of her tight control and let out a loud laugh, hugging herself as she let out a deep breath.

Her phone rang, and her jubilant mood faltered a little. It wasn't like her contact to reach out to her, and she pulled out her phone and looked at the display for a moment before answering. "Greenaway here."

"You might want to head home, Elle. I picked up a blip in Garcia's searches."

"What do you mean, a blip?"

"I mean, she was specifically looking into people who might have grudges against the BAU. You told me to look out for things of that nature, and so I'm telling you that's what's going on. Do with the information what you will. But if I were you, I'd come back to Quantico before things spiral out of control so far that you can't bring them back in."

"All right, I hear you. Besides, I think that I've got all I need from here. They are a tight knit group, aren't they?"

"Even more so than when you were with the team. They've been through so many tragedies, that it truly seemed to cement them into a family. And then they forget that they're not the only people attached to the BAU."

"There's no need to be so bitter. At least you still work with the FBI. I've had to exist in the shadows ever since I walked away from the BAU. Hotch blacklisted me, and no one would return my calls afterwards. It's like I wasn't ever a part of the elite squad. Well, they'll rue the day that they pushed me out of their circle. Mark my words."

Her contact let out a bitter laugh, and she narrowed her eyes as she got out of her car, heading into her room to grab her things. "Elle, you need to walk that rope very carefully. There will be severe consequences if you fuck up at the beginning."

"Don't you think I know that? Look, I'm grateful that you're helping me, but this pressure is not allowing me to think straight. I'll contact you once I'm back at my place. I'm going to use the drive home to think about ways to be more inconspicuous while I collect my intel on the team."

"Sounds like a good idea. Be in touch soon."

Her contact hung up, and Elle let out a frustrated sigh as she shoved her phone in her pocket and took stock of what she needed to pack up. Thankfully, she had never gotten away from living out of her bags when she had been with the BAU, so she didn't have too much to clean up, beside what was in the bathroom. In ten minutes, she was finished and back in her car, headed to Quantico. As Elle drove, she began to plot what he next move would be. Obviously, she needed to play things a little more close to the vest, but that was okay, she could do that, as long as it meant that she would achieve her goal – bringing Aaron Hotchner down.