THE MIND THIEVES
Chapter 1
Recovery

A good vacation is over when you begin to yearn for your work. Morris Fishbein

The four of them sat in the departure lounge. Reid had 'A Guide to Napoli' and was telling the others about the city and what they were going to see...whether they wanted to hear or not! He had never been to Europe before, and was really excited. It was, "Hey! Listen to this!" and he would read a list of statistics regarding the hours of sunshine in each month, and rainfall in inches. Aaron smiled inwardly; Reid would never forget those figures, whereas he had forgotten them as soon as he heard them.

He twisted round in his wheel chair and propelled himself towards the men's room. Dave got up immediately.

"Do you need help, Aaron. "

Aaron smiled over his shoulder. At least they were asking first now, and not jumping in to help without asking.

"I'm fine, thanks." He said, determined that he was going to regain his independence this holiday. It was hard to believe that it was only a week ago when he began to recover from his ordeal in the hands on Edward Fair and family. The doctors had told him that a combination of his own strength and the antibodies from Maureen had saved his life. He still was sick a lot, and they had told him it would take months for a full recovery, but his with strength of mind he was going to do better than that.

The others watched him go. Rossi wishing his friend wouldn't be so damned stubborn, Emily feeling immense pride; Reid just happy that he was recovering. They all hoped that this holiday would heal him enough to get back to work.

Reid had avoided getting the virus. The doctors said it was probably because he had a natural immunity to it, or possibly because he had a virus already. He had come down with a severe cold a few days later, and he was already incubating that. He was a bit wobbly on his feet still, but Dr Shutt had done a good job.

When the flight was called, Hotch was returning from the men's room. They were going to be the last to board, so there was no hurry. Dave had all the passports and tickets, they having decided to keep everything together.

Emily pushed Aaron's chair, and the other two walked either side of him. Hotch knew they were subconsciously in a protective formation around him. He thought it was nice that they cared so much; before this happened to him, he didn't realise the depth of their feelings.

When the plane had boarded, Spencer and Dave carried him onto the plane and settled him in his seat. He wasn't embarrassed by this any more. They managed to do this without stripping his dignity, and he loved them for it.

He sat by the window and watched the sea pass below him. The stress of getting ready for the flight had exhausted him, and having to go back to his house after all this time was traumatic. He had been initially upset that Haley hadn't brought Jack to see him, but as Dave had said, she left because of his job. She wouldn't want Jack to see him when he was so ill. Going home had hurt. Everyday living there didn't affect him; going back after a few weeks always tore at him, reopening wounds he thought were healed.

Dave, bless him, had gone back with him. Just having his friend there took some of the angst, but it still hurt. This was the place where he built his dreams. Now the dreams were over, all he could see were the ruins, smashed and destroyed. He collected what he needed and left as quickly as he could.

He wanted to go back there to live after this break, and maybe get back to work. Dave was good to him, but he was used to having his own space, and Aaron felt as if he was invading. Nothing Dave did made him feel like this. It all came from him.

He rested his head back and closed his tired eyes

-0-0-0-

"He's sleeping." Emily said. "I'm glad."

"I hope this holiday will refresh him, and not wear him out." Dave said, a worried frown on his face. "I got the tickets before that last case.

Reid put a comforting arm on his shoulder. "He has us to take the stress, Dave. He'll be fine."

Dave nodded, still not convinced.

"I wonder how Morgan is going to get in with Strauss." Emily said, changing the subject. "I'd love to be a fly on the wall."

"I wonder if he'll still be working there when we get back!" Reid said. "They will probably kill each other!"

Rossi laughed. He couldn't imagine them getting on too well either. "That's their problem, thank goodness."

-0-0-0-

Spencer plugged in his iPod and sat back, eyes closed, listening to The Foundation Trilogy...at last! Emily and Dave chatted together about their time pre-BAU. Dave had worked for the BAU right at the beginning when Hoover's legacy was still very much in evidence – when women weren't allowed, and they had lessons in bad language. Any transcripts to be typed up containing these naughty' words had to be typed up by the office 'Obscene Steno', an older woman who would not be disturbed by seeing such terrible things in print. It was in such an environment that Dave and John Douglas became founder members of the BAU resulting in the crack team they had today.

About half way through the flight, Emily and Dave were feeling tired, and not a little tipsy. They both tilted back their seats and went to sleep.

-0-0-0-

Aaron woke up as the seat belts sign came on. He fastened his and woke up Emily who was sitting beside him. He was surprised that he had slept for so long. He felt crumpled and untidy; he took his comb from his pocket and combed the hair off his face. His fringe was getting long now, and he thought of getting it cut. But not before the holiday! Maybe to go back to work.

They were all strapped in when the hostess walked down the aisle to check that her travellers were ready for the landing, and the pilot told them how hot it was in Napoli.

Aaron watched Napoli International Airport come closer. He was looking forward to this; he needed some stress free recovery time, and this far from Quantico, the other side of the world, would hopefully give him the opportunity.

He took out his picture of Jack and smiled. When he had asked his little boy what he would like Daddy to bring back from his holiday, he had said

"A car".

An Italian car – one that was covered in dents!

Emily finished her last drink, and Spencer put away his iPod. They sat back and felt the soft jolt as the plane landed.

-0-0-0-

The hotel was lovely. Dave had booked them all a separate room, sea view and veranda. They had adjoining rooms on the ground floor to make it easier for Aaron. Emily was in the next room to Aaron and he had asked her if she would mind unlocking the adjoining door just in case he got into difficulties during the night. She wondered if he could remember what she had told him when he was in a coma, and they thought they had lost him. Maybe tonight she would tell them again. She hoped that she would get the chance.

They took Dave out to eat on the first night. They wandered the little back streets where the Italians did their shopping and found a tiny unique restaurant where the food was genuine. They sat around a table on the pavement in the cool evening air, watching the local people go about their business. Aaron felt happy for the first time in a long time. The other side of the world to the evils of serial killers and hostage takers; life seemed so peaceful here.

After their meal they slowly meandered back through the streets to the hotel. Dave bought a local paper to see what was going on in the town over the next two weeks, but just wandering, observing the people and unconsciously profiling them was a fascinating pass time. They ended up in the hotel bar and bought a round of drinks each. It was good for them to see Aaron let his hair down and just enjoy himself, knowing that there could not be a phone call to wreck the evening. They laughed and giggled like school kids on a skive, and at eleven, Aaron said he needed to sleep. Emily wheeled him to his room.

"Do you need help?"she asked.

"A little." He said, as he pulled the tee shirt over his head. "Would you... erm...?"

She bent down to him and put her arms around his waist, as if to lift him from the chair. He put a finger under his chin and tilted her head back, looking into her eyes.

"Thank you." He said softly. He rested his other hand on the side of her face, his fingers in her hair. "Thank you."

She sank to her knees and brushed her lips softly onto his. He pulled her close and kissed her deeply.

"i remember what you said, Emily. Was it because I was going to die, or do you still feel the same?"

By way of an answer, she kissed him back. Aaron put his arms around her and drew her close. She rested her head on his shoulder, and he pressed his face into her hair, breathing the scent of her subtle perfume. He felt tears well up in his eyes, and pulled away.

"What is it Aaron?" she asked, touching his cheek with her finger tips. "I can understand if you don't want to do this."

Aaron felt the tears overflow. "I don't think I can." He said. "I am so sorry..."

"That's ok, Sweetheart. Let me just hold you tonight."

Tenderly, she lifted him out of the chair and laid him on the bed. She took off his jeans and shoes and covered him with the quilt, and stripped off to her underwear. Slipping into bed beside him, she felt a shudder run through her body; a tremble of excitement at being so close to the man she had wanted and loved for so long. Just laying there, his arms around her, her head resting on his muscular chest; it was all she ever wanted, and she could hardly believe it was happening.

-0-0-0-

In the bar, Dave and Spencer were drinking their last Rum and Coke as Dave read out the headlines of the paper he had bought.

"'Ladro mento'" he read

"What is it about?" Reid asked. "Please, translate it for me."

Dave read through the item to himself quickly.

"Something is going on, Reid." He said. "What ever you do, don't let Aaron see this. He will want to get involved, and he isn't well enough."

Spencer agreed. "Would you read it to me?" Reid was frustrated at not being able to read it himself and made himself a promise to earn Italian when he got home. In the mean time, he would read the phrase book he had bought at the airport.

"Ok," Dave said. "The headline means 'Mind thieves'."