Aaron Hotchner was never late. He, like her, was punctual to a fault so when two days passed without word, she started to not only get worried, but disappointed. Books, no matter how touching the gesture was and how thoughtful each of the titles had been, could only occupy her for so long.
She’d zoned out when the phone in her room rang angrily at her. She jumped, fully not prepared for the sound. “Hello?”
“I would have called sooner, but the last couple of days have been busy.”
Suddenly, Emily wasn’t sure she was so disappointed anymore. “A case?”
“In LA. We’ve been meeting with local PD and the Bureau for the last forty-eight hours.”
She missed that kind of busyness. “What case?”
“You should be focusing on your recovery, not on our case.”
Emily rolled her eyes. “I’m miles away, what can I do from here? I think it’s physically impossible for me to strain myself from Virginia when you’re in California.”
“Child sex trade.”
“How many?” she asked immediately, dropping a bookmark in the book she was reading and automatically shifting into ‘case mode’.
“Emily... “
“How many?”
He sighed. “Four, and eight are missing.”
“Wow,” she breathed. “That’s a lot.”
“If he’s following a pattern we’ll be looking for the fifth body soon.”
Emily frowned. “PD doesn’t have anything?”
“The families, a few witnesses…”
“Nothing.”
“Yeah. How are you?”
She took the change of subject gracefully. “Better now,” she admitted quietly, her implication clear. “And I can say, with great fanfare that I have not aggravated the stitches.”
He chuckled and Emily found she could easily get used to the sound. “You’ll be walking in no time.”
“That’ll be a day to celebrate,” Emily agreed. “But for now, I’m still confined to a hospital bed.”
“No chair today?”
She snorted. “Like I’m going to let just anyone push. It takes a lot of trust to put your life in someone’s hands like that, especially when they’re behind you.”
Hotch was silent.
“Hello?”
“Thank you,” he said. “I have to go, I’ll call later.”
She’d be lucky if later meant tomorrow, but she knew the stress of the job. “Whenever you get a chance,” she agreed. “Good luck.”
“Be good.”
That made her smile, even as the dial tone sounded in her ear.
________________________________________
This was not getting any easier. Though they had a pretty good idea of who their unsub was, he had managed to evade police for days, snatching two more children with him. He hadn’t called Emily back since their conversation three days prior and, much to his surprise, he truly missed her. He’d gotten so used to talking to her and seeing her on a regular basis that being on a case without her seemed much longer and harder than usual.
The team was feeling it too. Each member played a key role in the way their team functioned and with one member missing it just didn’t seem to function right. It had happened when Garcia had been off recovering and now it was happening with Emily. Morgan missed her like a sister, missed teasing and bantering with her. There had been a few times Hotch had guessed he had turned for her opinion, only to realize she wasn’t there. JJ missed her roommate and another female presence and influence. In a very ‘boys-club’ world, it always helped to have backup. Even Reid seemed a little off, and had actually jumped when Morgan stepped in on the profile where he was sure Emily would.
“I feel like we’re missing something,” Morgan said in frustration. “Like this guy is always going to be a step ahead of us.”
“There’s got to be something in all of this that will lead us to where he is,” JJ protested, standing at the table with her hands on her hips.
Hotch wasn’t listening. For once, his mind was not on his job but on how odd his team was when missing a member. Without the full permission of his brain, he pulled out his cell phone and dialled.
“Hello?”
“How are you feeling?” He winced. She read behaviour as well as him and she didn’t sound like she was hopped up on painkillers. He could almost sense the change in her mood over the phone.
“How many heads have you taken off in the last little while? Tell me about it.”
“About what?”
“What’s bugging you.”
Hotch looked around at the others. “No.”
Emily sighed on the other end of the line. She’d gotten very little sleep, her nightmares painted across the back of her eyelids every time she tried. She was on a short temper herself, and it snapped. “Fine. I’m fine, they’ll take the stitches out in a couple of days and then I’m free to go. Bye.”
“Wait,” he blurted.
“I don’t have the patience to deal with this over-reactive protective streak,” she said, her voice sounding tired. It spoke of what she’d been dealing with.
What are you doing? His mind railed at him. This isn’t Haley. Emily doesn’t need to be protected from the case. She may actually be able to help.
“We found a sixth body today,” he said, leaning his forehead on his hand.
“Sixth? You’ve already found a fifth?”
Apparently, a lot more could happen in three days than he thought. “A couple of days ago. And he’s snatched two more in the meantime.”
“Six dead, eight missing. He’s busy. Tell me more.”
________________________________________
It took them two days to track down their unsub “ but they managed to save the other eight children “ and then another two to tie up the loose ends. Hotch could actually feel the tension releasing from his neck and shoulders as he made his way down the now-familiar halls of the hospital. It felt very good to put the case behind him.
He stopped dead in the familiar doorway when he saw there was no one there. Her things were still scattered around the room and it comforted him a little.
“She’s getting her stitches removed.”
Hotch turned to face the friendly nurse at the desk. “Today?”
“Dr Hann said it was time. She should be back momentarily.”
He smiled his thanks and made his way into the room, settling himself on the chair he usually used and picking up one of the books he’d brought. True to the nurse’s prediction, an orderly pushed Emily around the corner a few minutes later.
She flashed him a thousand watt smile that did funny things to his insides. “Hey.”
“Hey,” he replied, meeting her smile with his own slightly toned down version.
“Outside? It’s a gorgeous day and I could use the fresh air,” she proposed.
He raised an eyebrow at her blatant cheerfulness. “You seem particularly happy today,” he pointed out as he took over the chair from the other man.
“Why shouldn’t I be?” Emily asked rhetorically. “Your case is closed, my stitches are out and assuming nothing goes wrong I’ll be clear to leave in about two days.”
“By yourself?”
She sighed. “Dr Hann would prefer I stay with someone. Guess it’s maid service until I’m cleared for duty.”
“Stay with me.” The words were out before his mind really had a chance to digest the idea, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea.
“I couldn’t impose like that,” she contradicted.
“It wouldn’t be imposing,” Hotch insisted. “There’s a spare bedroom I can make up for you, then you’re with someone you know.”
That was part of what terrified her. She hadn’t discussed the attack with anyone since giving the team and the necessary authorities her statement and as a result, she hadn’t spoken to anyone about her nightmares. She wasn’t sure she was going to be comfortable with her boss and the man she had definitely grown even more attracted to knowing that she woke up at all hours terrified it was happening again, even if he may already have an inkling.
On the other hand, weighing Elizabeth Prentiss against Aaron Hotchner left her with a very clear winner.
“It’s a really nice offer, Hotch and I really appreciate it, but-“
“Great. Let me know when you’re getting out and I’ll come pick you up.”
“But-“
“Emily,” he interrupted again, resting one hand on her shoulder as the elevator started to descend. “Don’t argue with me on this.”
“You really don’t have to,” she said softly.
It was his turn to go out on a limb. She’d done it over the phone, when she’d implied hearing his voice made her feel better. “I want to.” The smile she gave him was full of emotions he wasn’t sure he wanted to identify.
They made their way to the same bench they usually did and Hotch was a bit surprised when Emily pushed herself almost all of the way out of the chair. “When did the doctor say you could walk?” he asked, catching her for the last few inches, but allowing her to seat herself.
“A couple of days ago, the same day you called,” she told him.
His eyes narrowed. “What aren’t you telling me?”
Emily pouted playfully. “I hate profilers. I was walking a couple of days before that. I’ve got one of the night nurses wrapped around my finger and we’d do two laps around my room at about eleven.”
“How long?” Hotch asked, sighing in exasperation.
She wrinkled her nose as she thought about it. “Three or four days, I think. Dr Hann just figured I understood I needed rest to get better and that’s why I’d stopped fidgeting all the time. And I promise,” she added when she saw his mouth open, most likely to chastise her, “There was no risk of further injury. Phil was with me the whole time.”
“Phil?”
“The nurse that was helping me around. He’s been on the night shift since he graduated.”
“He tell you his life story?”
Emily tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. “You’re not jealous, are you?” She felt so much more comfortable teasing Hotch now than she did before. The visits had not been from the FBI agent, but from someone she affectionately referred to as ‘Aaron’ in her head. She jumped on the opportunity to treat him like any other guy.
“A nurse should know you shouldn’t be up walking,” he answered, looking down at her from where he stood.
She snorted. “I’m injured, not invalid,” she pointed out. “I just didn’t see the point in holding myself back. Walking meant getting better.”
Hotch caught on. He wasn’t naïve enough to think that the attack hadn’t left lasting effects, nor did he believe for an instant she was nightmare-free, but if she didn’t want to talk about it, he wasn’t going to push. It just wasn’t his place yet. “And getting better is one step closer to normal.”
“They found the guy, you know,” Emily revealed as he finally took a seat beside her. “The lead detective came by to see me last week. He also apologized for the delay in notifying you.”
“That’s a good thing.”
She shrugged. “They think he’s responsible for killing another woman after I was attacked. The police didn’t actually arrest him, the woman he attacked beat him up.”
For a profiler, the self-deprecation in her voice was clear. “You’re upset because you didn’t.”
She sighed. Coming from him, it sounded stupid. “I’m just as trained, and yet, I couldn’t stop him from doing this.” Her hand went to her side. “I’m the agent, and I’m the one in the hospital.”
“No one is perfect,” he said, cupping her chin to ensure her eyes stayed on his. “You are alive, and that’s the important part.”
Yup, she thought to herself, not for the first time. Haley is out of her bloody mind.