Chapter Four

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A yawning Spencer rubbed his eyes as he heard the cries through the baby monitor. Jessie was now four weeks old and was sleeping in her crib. Well, during the day she was sleeping, but for the last two nights, she'd decided that night time was meant for being up and keeping her parent's up. Seeing Emily dragging herself from bed, he put a hand on her arm, stopping her.

"Go back to sleep, I've got her this time."

"Are you sure? You have to go to work in a few hours," the exhausted mother protested. She felt bad, she could go back to sleep when Jessie took a nap, but Spencer couldn't.

"I'm sure, I'll be fine. There's coffee at work, remember? I'll just have double the amount," he said as he climbed from bed and followed the sound of his daughter's cries to the nursery.

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"What's the matter, Angel? It's the middle of the night, you're supposed to be sleeping," he said as he picked her up. Almost instantly she quieted and snuggled into Reid's chest. "Is that all you wanted was to be held, well, come on, let's sit in the rocking chair and see if I can get you back to sleep. As gently as he could, Reid settled into the rocking chair and began rocking. The rocking soothed the baby for a little while, but then she began fussing again and started rubbing her face against her father's chest. "Are you hungry, Jessie, well I really don't want to wake Mommy since she's so tired. I think she pumped and made a couple of bottles before she went to bed, though. How about we go see?" he whispered as he headed for the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. He was relieved to see two bottles in the appliance. Pulling one out, he placed it in the microwave for 25 seconds, after removing it, he tested it on his wrist to make sure it was warm, but not too warm. Satisfied that it was the right temperature he guided the nipple to the babies' eager mouth. The baby began suckling hungrily. "Wow, slow down there, it's not going anywhere," he laughed softly. Once she was done with the bottle, Spencer placed her against his shoulder and began patting her back waiting for a burp. It didn't take long before he was rewarded with a solid burp. "Good girl, that was a good one," he whispered as he saw her eyes start to droop. "Let's go back to bed, it's not time to be up yet," he murmured into the babies' ear. By the time he'd arrived back at the nursery, Jessie was sound asleep. As carefully as he could, he placed the baby in the crib. After watching her sleep for a little bit, he made sure the monitor was still on then headed back to his and Emily's bedroom to catch what little sleep he could before his alarm would go off. It was going to be a long day at work that was for sure; he mused as he climbed back into bed and smiled as Emily snuggled into his side. I'm sure a lucky man was his last thought before he drifted back off to sleep.

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"Damn, pretty boy, you look rough. Did you have a long night?"

"Yeah, the baby has her days and nights mixed up and she kept us up most of the night. I'll sure be glad when she remembers that days are for being awake and that nights are for sleeping," the genius declared as he collapsed wearily into his chair. Leaning forward he put his head on his desk, clearly exhausted. Morgan chuckled at his friend's predicament.

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JJ and a laughing Garcia walked into the bullpen and frowned at the sight of Reid practically sleeping at his desk.

"Is my junior G-man okay?" Garcia asked worriedly.

"He's fine, the baby has her days and nights mixed up and has apparently been keeping the new parents up most of the last couple of nights," the dark-skinned agent explained.

"Awe, that's too bad," JJ said sympathetically. Just then Hotch appeared on the catwalk.

"My team, round table room, please." Everyone headed for the round table room. JJ stopped when she saw that Reid wasn't with them.

"You guys go on ahead, I'll get Spence," she said heading for the geniuses desk.

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Reaching her best friend's desk, the blonde smiled when she saw he'd dozed off. Reaching out, she placed a hand on his arm and shook him gently.

"Spence, wake up, Hotch needs us in the round table room," she called softly. Reid's head shot up and he stared in confusion at the blonde media liaison.

"Huh? What did you say?" he asked rubbing his face trying to wake up.

"I said I think we have a case, Hotch called us into the round table room," JJ repeated. Shaking his head to clear the cobwebs Reid nodded and stood up. After making a detour to make another cup of coffee, he headed for the round table room to be briefed on their latest case.

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"Ladies and gentlemen, you're heading to Tampa Florida. Men are being beaten then killed and found with a cross carved in their chests," Garcia explained as she pressed the button on the remote to bring up the information on the screen.

"The unsub seems to like red heads," Rossi commented. "And they're all about 30 years old," he continued.

"Are there any connections between the five men yet?" Morgan wanted to know.

"No, not that I have found so far," Garcia replied.

"Where are they found?" JJ interjected.

"They've all been found in front of the local library," Hotch answered.

"Hmm, that's an interesting place to dispose of a body," Reid mumbled.

"Any ideas as to why they'd choose the library, Reid?" Hotch asked, addressing the genius.

"No, I can't think of any, but I'll think about it," he answered with a yawn.

"Okay, everyone, wheels up in 30. Everyone rest on the plane. We can brief more near the end of the flight," Hotch instructed. He could see how tired the youngest member of the team was and he wanted to give him a bit to rest. Hotch knew better than anybody how exhausting having a newborn baby could be.

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The sound of her phone vibrating woke Emily from a nap she was taking on the couch while Jessie slept in her pack-and-play.

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"Hey there, handsome," she greeted sleepily.

"Hey you, sorry to wake you. We just got a case and we're going to be leaving soon."

"Where are you going and what is the case about?" Emily questioned.

"We're going to Tampa Florida. Men are being beaten then killed," he informed her. Emily felt her shoulders drop. This wasn't the first case Reid had been on since Jessie's birth, but it didn't make it easier.

"Okay, call me if I can help you guys with anything. Please be careful and call when you can," she requested.

"I will, give Jess a kiss for me, and tell her daddy loves her, please," the genius responded.

"Of course I will, you should get going. Let me know when you land, and call me when you get to the hotel."

"Always, I love you, sweetheart. I'll touch base as soon as I can. Good bye, Emily," Reid said hanging up and heading to go check his go bag before heading to meet up with everyone else at the air strip.